The farmer in today's gospel seems extravagantly wasteful -- sowing 3/4 of his seeds on sand and rocks and thorns and only 1/4 on "prepared soil"...one would expect a very small harvest; but the result is a yield of 30-100 fold. Economically speaking that only accentuates the waste -- imagine what could have been done?

But that is the way we are programmed to think. Jesus is trying to tell us another message in the parable, the way God thinks. Jesus often uses parables to turn the expectations of his listeners inside out.

Those who first heard this parable would have expected a farmer to be much more frugal in his sowing; they would also have expected him to have done more to ready his field for planting; and not to have wastefully scattered his seed hither and yonder; and they never would have expected the multi-fold harvests. Was this some kind of miracle seed?

Yes, the Word of God is miracle seed. God is the sower who wastes his "Life-giving Grace" upon all of his children -- those whose hearts are fertile to receive -- as our grandmothers and ours but also upon us whose hearts maybe fickle at times or even hardened like rock with bitterness and resentment. Where and when God's grace will produce fruit will only be made known at the final harvest.

That is an important message of encouragement for parents whose children have seemed to turn away; for teachers and even preachers; for all of us who can become discouraged or disillusioned when we don't see immediate results. It is a human tendency to "give up" and say "it's just impossible" when our efforts don't bring immediate results.

We are so concerned with results. Jesus is telling us he is much more concerned with our efforts than our results. Even if we don't get the results, the efforts themselves are their own reward. God is pleased with our work.

The first reading from Isaiah is a brief passage which extols the power of God's word. The prophet proclaimed these words to a people living in exile. He wanted them to know and to feel the energy of God's redeeming word.

He wanted them to continue to hope and to persevere in trust that God's promise will not go unfulfilled. The word that goes out from God's mouth will achieve the purpose for which it was sent. There is both comfort and challenge in God's Word.

In the second reading St. Paul tells us that we are not at work alone. That the Holy Spirit is at work within us.--groaning inwardly as we await the final harvest The Spirit groans for us to work together.

The most striking thing about this passage is that enormous dignity that Paul ascribes to people who live in hope. Hope is not the counsel to bear it up with a stiff upper lip but it is the counsel to find purpose and salvation in suffering by uniting it with that of Christ.

Remember the parable of last week's gospel; Jesus used the image of a yoke--that couples--that pairs together a team. The Spirit groans for us to allow Him to team with us in our efforts to live the way of God. We cannot do it alone. God cannot do it alone. Together we can do it. That is the wonderful news of the gospel.

If we had to wait for all the evil of the world to be first eradicated we would never be able to celebrate Eucharist--or on the other hand if simply go through the motions with a physical presence with mind and soul asleep somewhere the word of God cannot impact on an empty body. We allow God to waste Himself.

The word of God which Jesus speaks is like the seed. Some falls on listening ears; others on the distracted or ambivalent or even resentful.

Liturgy is an expression of God's mystery, of God's presence to us. If we are scuttled in distractions of the past, or preoccupations of the future, what I have to do when I get out of here. God is not able to speak to us.

Liturgy is miracle--the transformation of bread and wine into the Body and blood of Christ and the transformation of us who eat it from individuals to a community of faithful--a human body of Christ.