WHITE HOUSE JESUIT RETREAT

St. Louis, MO 63129

1-800-643-1003

Jesuit retreat center high on the bluffs of the Mississippi River in St. Louis, MO.  Since 1922, thousands of people from around the world make annual three-day silent, guided retreats here to relax, reconnect with God and strengthen their spirituality.  A true gem in the Midwest!  Call 314-416-6400 or 1-800-643-1003.  Email reservations@whretreat.org  7400 Christopher Rd.  St. Louis, MO 63129

Both men's and women's retreats are offered as well as recovery retreats.

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Weekend Reflections for 7/11/14

July 11, 2014  /  Joe Parisi

Taking time to grow

 

And Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: "A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep, and when the sun rose it was scorched, and it withered for lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it. But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold."(Matthew 13:3-8)

 

The parable of the sower is, I believe, addressed to good soil! After all, if God is the sower, I suspect most of the seed falls on the good soil. This parable is told to those who are open to receiving God's word. Sure, we all have some rocks, some thorns, some dryness in our lives, but we have every reason to hope that God's word in us will produce fruit, for God's "word will achieve the end for which I sent it."

 

My problem is not whether this will be but WHEN. I am not patient; I want everything now; I do not wait well. Maybe that is why I enjoy time-lapse photography: things happen quickly, the seed seems to grow into a plant in no time at all.

 

As "good ground" I cannot make the seed grow. I need to be there, basking in the sun, holding the moisture, but waiting until the "right time" for the growth. But I always think I must do something; how hard it is for me to stop wanting to do something and let the seed, the word of God take root in me and produce fruit on its own.

 

God asks me to do two things which I find difficult: to wait...and let God work in me; to trust...in someone other than myself. The birth of the Kingdom may be like the birth of a child: it can't be rushed: it is a process; the child takes time to grow - but, oh, what a wonderful miracle when the "right time" comes.

 

Do I believe: that the seed is growing, that the Kingdom is coming, that the One who planted the seed will reap the harvest beyond all of my expectations and imaginings?