Daily Catholic Lectio. Wed, 28 January ‘26. Life as Seed

Daily Catholic Lectio

Wed, 28 January ‘26

Third Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday

St. Thomas Aquinas, Memorial

2 Sam 7:4-17. Mk 4:1-20

Life as Seed

Life does not treat everyone in the same way. Some are born into comfort, others into struggle. Some receive many opportunities, others very few. Yet there are certain realities that unite us all: time moves forward for everyone, death awaits everyone, and meaning is something everyone seeks. In today’s Gospel, Jesus offers us a powerful image to understand this shared human journey: life as a seed.

In the parable of the sower, Jesus speaks of one seed but four kinds of soil. The seed has the same potential in every case; what changes is the soil that receives it. The seed is the Word of God, but it is also our own life—fragile, full of promise, and entrusted to the earth of daily choices.

The first soil is the path. It has become hard because many feet have walked over it. The seed cannot enter and is quickly taken away. This speaks of lives that have become closed—hardened by routine, fear, or constant pressure. At times, our life is swallowed by others: their expectations, demands, and control. We lose ourselves, and the seed never takes root.

The second soil is rocky ground. The seed sprouts quickly, but when it meets resistance, it dries up. This is the life that begins with enthusiasm but lacks perseverance. When difficulties come, when effort is required, courage fades. We forget that growth always involves patience and struggle.

The third soil is full of thorny bushes. They offer shade and a sense of comfort, but in the long run they choke the plant. Jesus names these thorns clearly: worry, attraction to wealth, and uncontrolled desire. These do not always look dangerous. They can feel safe and familiar. Yet slowly, they suffocate life and prevent true fruitfulness.

Finally, there is the good soil. Here the seed bears fruit—thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold. Thirty comes from the seed’s own potential and our personal effort. Sixty comes when effort meets favourable circumstances. A hundred comes only by grace. Beyond our work and our environment, there is always God’s generous action. As the psalm reminds us, without the Lord, even our best efforts remain incomplete.

The first reading helps us deepen this image. God makes a covenant with David, promising to establish his house forever. David learns that it is not first about what he builds for God, but about surrendering himself to God. Like a seed that gives itself to the soil, David entrusts his life to the Lord. Fruitfulness begins with surrender.

Today we also remember Saint Thomas Aquinas, a great doctor of the Church. He allowed the seed of faith to grow through reason and study. In him, faith and intellect were not rivals but companions. Much of Christian philosophy and theology continues to draw life from his work. His life shows us what happens when good soil is cultivated with humility and discipline.

Life is seed. At times it is lost, at times it struggles, at times it is choked. Yet we are not condemned to remain poor soil. With patience, vigilance, and trust in grace, we can become good soil. Let us ask today for the courage to open our hearts, to persevere through resistance, to clear away the thorns, and to surrender ourselves fully to God—so that our life may bear fruit, not just thirty or sixty, but a hundredfold.

Fr. Yesu Karunanidhi

Archdiocese of Madurai

Missionary of Mercy