What Kind of Soil Are You?

July 12, 2026

In today’s First Reading God says, “Just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down, and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to one who sows and bread to one who eats, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; my word shall not return to me void but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it.”
   
God’s Word is effective and powerful. He created the universe by saying, “Let there be light,” and there was light. All the days of creation operate the same way.  God speaks, and it happens. The prophets would say, “Thus says the Lord…” and what they prophesied would come about.
   
In the Gospel, Jesus compares His teaching to a sower sowing seed. He teaches that if His Word (the seed) does not bear fruit, it is not a problem with the seed (word) but with the quality of the soil (us).

There are four kinds of soil that receive the seed very differently. There is the hard path, that does not receive the seed at all, and the birds eat the seed. There is the rocky ground, and the seed began to grow, but it did not have roots, so it was scorched by the sun. Some seed fell among thorns, and the seed began to grow, but the thorns choked it. There is the good soil, which welcomed the seed and produced much fruit.
   
You and I must ask what kind of soil we are. Do we listen to the Word of God? Is the soil of our hearts and minds filled with rocks and thorns that prevent God’s Word from bearing fruit? Have we tilled the soil, cleared the rocks, and weeded out the thorn?
—Fr. Mike Comer