Good Soil

 Yesterday at church, we sang:

 

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 my heart,

Lord, let my heart be good soil.

(1985, Hanson)

 

As we sang the song, and then hummed the melody in reflection,

I thought about the stories of good soil that I’d recently heard:

A teacher who spent her weekend at a PowWow because her student invited her,

A father who drove hours to see his son who was grieving the loss of the family’s pet,

An older brother who bought Legos and Pokémon cards so that he could have a project to do with his younger brother who was hurting,

A grandson who called his granddad because he needed to talk,

A grandmother who walked a long way to see her grandson march in a band competition,

A son who flew to his mother’s side after she had a heart attack,

A teenage girl who volunteered to fill a position at school that no one else wanted to fill,

A student who stood up to a bully because he didn’t want anyone getting hurt,

A customer who invited her favorite store owner to church in such a genuine way that the store owner went,

A teenage boy who looked beyond the differences of alopecia and befriended a girl because of who she is rather than how she looks,

A citizen who cared so much for the historical significance of a building that she fought to save it,

A mom who took her job of feeding teenagers on a mission trip so seriously that she went to three different grocery stores to get the best quality products for the cheapest price,

A minister who believes so much in the vastness of God that she risks her reputation to present views of God that move beyond narrow, Christian norms,

A doctor who listens to her patients and cares to see the big picture rather that moving her patients in and out to make a buck,

A principal who bought his staff breakfast as a small token of encouragement on a day when they were going to need encouragement to make it through,

Another teacher who diffused a student’s anger calmly rather than responding in kind.

 

Friends: When our hearts are good soil, there is no end to the goodness that abounds. So may our hearts be good soil, and may love and peace grow. Always. Amen.