The Soil of a Deacon's Heart

This week reminded me once again why I love being your brother. I sat with brother deacons, some newly ordained and learning how to weave ministry into the rhythm of marriage, family, and work; others carrying crosses that few people will ever know. There were conversations marked by some struggle, uncertainty, even tears. Yet there was also unmistakable joy. Joy not because life is easy, but because Christ is faithful. I left each encounter convinced that the Lord is still sowing good seed among us.

This Sunday's Gospel invites us to ask an important question, not, "How much seed am I sowing?" but "What kind of soil am I becoming?"

Isaiah reminds us that God's Word never returns void. The power has never been in the seed; it is in the Divine Sower. Our task is to remain receptive, allowing Him to cultivate our hearts through prayer, humility, and daily conversion.

For our newly ordained brothers, this is an especially important lesson. The diaconate is not another responsibility added to an already busy life. It is a vocation meant to permeate every aspect of life; our marriage, children, grandchildren, work, friendships, parish and AOD ministry. The stole is not something we put on at Mass; it is a call to servant leadership that shapes who we are long after it has been folded away, and we wear the Deacon Cross not only physically but within our hearts.

For those ordained many years, Jesus' warning is equally timely. Routine can harden the path. Disappointments can leave rocky ground. The thorns of administration, fatigue, criticism, or worldly anxiety can quietly choke what once flourished.

St. Paul tells us that all creation is groaning, waiting for redemption. We know those groans well. Yet they are the labor pains of hope.

May He continue to soften the soil of our hearts so that our lives bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold, for His glory and for the salvation of souls.

In Christ the Servant + Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
Receive + Believe + Teach + Practice