soil

We have been gardening for about three years now. We have a tilled plot of about 600 square feet in the back corner of our property.  The trouble is our soil is terrible.  We have no topsoil, only rocky ground.  I suspect that the builder/ developer sold the topsoil when they cleared the land for this development, leaving some homeowners with a problem.   I spent a couple of days last week amending the soil in my garden. The area was overgrown with weeds, leaves, and rocky debris.   Topsoil is so essential in plant growth. We can’t even grow grass in our rocky soil.  When the sun heats the ground, the grass withers and browns.  On the plus side, I don’t have to mow my lawn from late June until late September.  (Thanks to a warm winter, however, I stopped mowing in December and started mowing in early March this year).   So, in order to grow a better garden this spring, I trucked in a load of topsoil to cover the entire area.  I pulled all the weeds, tilled the ground, and raked out the rocks.  Adding a layer of topsoil, along with the compost we made all winter, has restored the garden.  It looks like the rest of the farmland in Lancaster County---dark brown, fertile soil ready for planting.  I know that this good soil will receive seeds and foster wonderful vegetation that will yield good vegetables for our consumption this coming season.  This soil will give us tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, squash, cucumbers, green beans, sweet corn, and a few other vegetables and herbs.  Growing up on the farm taught me the importance of soil and the proper care for it.  I spent a lot of time in fields as a kid.  Dirt is in my blood.  I know that some of you love gardening, grew up on farms, and appreciate good soil too. 

There is a hymn called “Lord let my heart be good soil”. The text is: “Lord let my heart be good soil, open to the seed of your word.  Lord, let my heart be good soil, where love can grow and peace is understood.  When my heart is hard, break the stone away.  When my heart is cold, warm it with the day. When my heart is lost, lead me on your way.  Lord, let my heart, Lord, let me heart, Lord let my heart, be good soil.”  The soil analogy works for people who know the difference between good and bad soil.  Jesus’ knew the difference and so should we.  Christians ought to have a connection with the land, because it teaches us about God, growth, and grace. 

Jesus’ parable of the sower in Mark 4:  “He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said: 3 “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”  Good soil is essential to crop production.  Eroded soil, rocky soil, and thorny ground all prevent plant growth.  In Jesus’ interpretation  of this story, Jesus compares the way people receive God’s Word with the way the four different soil types receive the seed.    How do you receive God’s Word?  Are you open to God’s voice, God’s commandments, God’s promises?  I suspect many of us are like the seed that fell among the thorns.  The worries and changes of life choke out the word, like weeds in the garden.  And so no fruit grows.  God wants His people to be receptive to His Word because God’s Word produces fruit in our lives.  God’s Word produces peace, joy, love, faith, compassion toward others, generosity, gentleness, kindness, and self-discipline.   God’s Word produces Christ-like behavior and an attitude of grace and thanksgiving.  But, our hearts can be hard or full of weeds. When the soil becomes too dry and sun scorched, nothing grows.  Spiritual dehydration occurs when we ignore the promise of Baptism over our lives, failing to identify with Christ and the church.  Many people have ignored the work of spiritual cultivation and find themselves facing stones and weeds where little vegetation grows.   How does one amend the soil of the heart?

Weekly worship, prayer, and serving others cultivate and nourish the soil of the Spirit.  When we are rooted in the Word and Sacrament community, the soil of our hearts becomes a place where God can grow His love, His peace, His joy.   If the soil of your heart needs amended, come to the master gardener’s workshop.  He’s available anytime, but the soil workshop is in session on Sundays at 9:30 am. 

Hope to see you there.  May God’s garden, the church, grow and produce the fruit of life this season.