Think about the best teachers you had in school. They were the ones who were able to meet you at your level, talking to you and not just at you. You couldn’t wait for their class to begin, because as soon as they started talking, you felt that you were learning something new and exciting, something much more than facts.

That’s the same way Jesus teaches us about his kingdom. He is not a data-cruncher who gives us charts and diagrams, and he’s not a stickler for details, concerned only that we are able to quote various rules and regulations. He uses parables, stories of people and situations that we can easily relate to, as he seeks to win our hearts as well as form our minds. And who knows how to do this better than the one who created us, entered our world as a man, and died to save us?

Like any good teacher, Jesus doesn’t just give us canned answers. He invites us to get involved. He challenges us to open our hearts and humbly receive his word into our souls. If his teaching is going to bear fruit in our lives, we have to “listen with our ears” and “look with our eyes” (Matthew 13:15). Though we have the unfailing teaching of the church, there is no substitute for discovering what the word of God is saying to each of us alone.

Try to do just that as you read this parable. Before you begin, place yourself in God’s presence, free from distractions. Trust that he is speaking to you through the parable. Are you beginning to hear your spiritual “heartbeat”? Then don’t be too quick to leave! What is Jesus saying to you about the soil in your life? What kind of fruit is growing there? What “thorns,” big or small, are keeping him at a distance? As you listen, remember how much he loves you, and be confident that he will complete the good work he has begun in you (Philippians 1:6).

“Lord, I want to receive you with joy today. Make my heart like the good soil, always receptive to your Spirit.”

Questions for Reflection/Discussion by Catholic Men

1. In the first reading, God tells us through the metaphor of rain how fruitful his word is, always “achieving the end” for which he sent it. What part does the word of God play in your life? What can you do this week to devote more time to Scripture reading?
   
    

2. In the responsorial psalm, again we read of the “fruitful harvest” and the role of rain in preparing, “breaking” and “softening” our hearts. Can you share with your brothers a time when God’s word softened your heart and lead to fruitful changes?
   
    

3. In the letter to the Romans, St. Paul compares “slavery” to sin with the “glorious freedom” of the children of God. Where in your life have you known victory over sin?
   
    

4. In the Gospel, we read once again of the seed and the harvest. Which of the soils described in the Parable of the Sower best describes the state of your heart? What steps can you take to make your heart a “rich soil” that “hears the word and understand it” and “bears fruit.”
   
    

5. Jesus also speaks of those who look but do not see, and those who hear but do not listen. When receiving the Eucharist at Mass this week, how careful are you to prepare your heart and mind to really see and listen? What about prior to hearing the Sunday Mass readings? Try taking some additional steps to prepare your heart and mind at Mass, and share the results at your men’s meetings.
   
    

6. The Gospel and today’s meditation speak of thorns. What thorns, big or small, may be keeping Jesus at a distance in your life?
   
    

7. The meditation offers this advice before reading the Parable of the Sower, “place yourself in God’s presence, free from distractions.” Why is this good advice each time we read and meditate on the Scriptures? Try implementing this in your times of personal Scripture reading, and in your times of prayer. Share the results at your men’s meetings.