As an amateur gardener, I love this reading because of the visual images of farming during Jesus’ lifetime.  I imagine the farmers taking great care to select where to plant and then walking the field, manually clearing rocks, weeds, and other debris before scattering their precious seeds.  It was hard, sometimes frustrating work, but they loved their gardens and the gifts of food they produced.  They were master gardeners, as evidenced by their ability to survive and thrive. 

I imagine many people gathered around Jesus relating to this parable, but perhaps some were confused about the imagery of seeds tossed into less favorable places.  Is He saying God, the Master Gardener, intentionally throws some of us into weeds, rocky soil, or other bleak places?  Does this mean God does not care for all plants?  

Reflecting on this reading, I remind myself that people, in some ways, are like seeds.  We flourish in well-prepared gardens that offer a loving, nurturing environment, enabling us to grow into our True Selves.  Unlike seeds, sometimes we, knowingly or unknowingly, toss ourselves on a path that strangles our souls.  Sometimes, it is the world that discards us, but God never intentionally throws us to the sidelines.  God loves every plant.

I hear a caution and two invitations in this reading.  The caution I hear is not to allow my life to be held hostage by what Ignatius calls disordered attachments, such as threats of persecution, anxiety, a desire for wealth, and unhealthy cravings (Mk 4:16-19).  The first invitation is to push my roots in well-tended soil to grow closer to God’s love.  The second invitation is to listen and hear God’s voice, which empowers me to bear fruit (Mk 4:20) within the concrete circumstances of my life.  One way I can bear fruit is by extending a welcome and offering accompaniment to anyone longing to live in richer soil. 

Last but certainly not least, I recall Ignatius’ invitation to live each day with a grateful heart and ask God for the grace to help me keep my roots planted in His soil.  Focusing on my soul’s journey, I leave the “tending” of every plant to the Master Gardner, secure with the knowledge that God loves every plant unconditionally.   

But those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and
bear fruit thirty and sixty and hundredfold.  Mk 4:20

The seed is the word of God; Christ is the sower; all who come to him will live forever.