Homily week 15 - cycle A - Listen and understand God's Word and you'll be blessed

         My daughter was married in May and I took a week off from serving due to all our family being in town for the wedding. We were all not able to make Sunday Mass until the evening and we went to a 7pm Mass at St. Thomas More.   At the end of Mass a lady came up to speak. She was dressed in tropical attire, had a lei on her neck, and flowers in her hair.  She also had some props: a little palm tree and a bucket of sand.  She invited all the youth to come on a trip next week where they would be flying to a tropical island and spending a week on the beach enjoying the sunshine.  As we were driving home one of our extended family members said: I sure wish our church could afford to send us a nice trip like that.    My wife and I got a chuckle this.   Our family member thought they were really going on a trip, but she was really talking about a tropical themed Vacation Bible School.   She heard the message, but didn’t understand. 

The sower of the seed in Jesus’ parable sounds like he is being a bit wasteful

spreading the seed everywhere: on the path, rocks, among thorns, and in rich soil.  I asked my son after we read the Gospel this week what he thought if I sprinkled the seed everywhere like the sower did in our garden.  We have a small garden with stepping stones surrounded by a rock and grass border. He said it would be a waste and thought the seed should only go in the fertile soil.  

The people of Jesus’ time thought it would be even more of a waste. 

Seed was a very precious commodity and none was wasted, as it was very hard to get. You couldn’t just run down to Home Depot if your seed ran out. 

Also Jerusalem and the surrounding area was mostly hard and rocky ground.

It required hard work to prepare the soil to be fertile.   You’d only plant seeds in areas that you knew they would grow. 

But Jesus uses the sower and seed to represent God and his word.   The different type of ground where the seed is scattered represents us. Sometimes we’re very fertile and prepared to receive Gods’ word.   Other times we’re like the path, rocky ground, or surrounded by thorns.   We may hear the word, but we don’t really listen and understand.   We’re not ready for it to bear fruit, to achieve the end for which God’s word was sent.  But God sends his word anyway because he is a generous lover.   His word is sent for all to hear and doesn’t expect anything in return.  It’s freely given in love.  He sends it regardless of whether we listen and understand, because he knows there will be time when we are ready.

Later on in the parable Jesus tells the apostles: “blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear”.   He sends his blessing because they not only hear, but they also listen and understand and will bear fruit yielding a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.  Today, 2000 years later, we experience the fruit of their understanding through the spread Christ’s Church through their ministry.  This is good news.  If we listen to the word of God we are blessed and we will bear great fruit. 

Who here is blessed because they listen and understand God’s Word? 

Now lets ask another way, who here is blessed because the understand all the time?    I can’t even raise my hand on that one. We all have many distractions in our lives that keep us from listening and understanding the word of God.  We have trials, anxieties, worries, and the pursuit of worldly riches that can distract us.  Have you ever been at Mass where your mind distracted during the readings and then you were confused trying to make sense of the homily? I’ve been there myself, but not as often as used to.  

How do we become better at listening and understanding the Word of God so it can bear fruit that God intends?  One good way is to take some quiet time weekly to prepare by read the Sunday readings prior to coming to the Mass.   Shut off the phone, computer, and TV and find a quiet area to read and reflect on the readings. You may also want take time as a family and do this together.    My son and I read the readings, each taking turns, and then reflect and discuss what they meant to us. There’s also a very good method call Lectio Divina where you prayerfully read and reflects on scripture.  After reading take some time to reflect on what they mean to you.  Try to get to Mass early if you can to prayerfully quiet down to hear the Word of God.  After Mass discuss with your family or friends how God’s word can make a difference in your life for the next week.  By preparing to receive the word of God you’ll be surprised at the fruit it bears. 

What about when you are struggling with the trails in your life and you feel far away from God? This can be a good time to turn to the God’s word.   You may not feel like praying and struggle to find the words.   I was there last night when I heard the news of the loss of our parishioner, Bill Gilliland.   I turned to the Psalms to help focus my mind on God and provide some consolation.  When you can’t find the words to pray during a tough time, God’s Word is there to help. 

God in his generosity and love make his word available to us whether we are fertile or rocky soil.  I pray that you all become better at listening and understanding the Word of God so you too will be blessed and bear the fruit that God intends for your lives.