Over time, as things got worse, I would hear again about the message of recovery. Now I was getting at least superficially ready to do something about my addiction—not that I admitted yet that my problem was really an addiction. I wasn’t that bad, was I? Maybe I even attended a few 12-step meetings. Maybe I even experienced a bit of time in recovery. I began to feel a bit better. The cloud began to lift. But I made no real changes in “people, places and things” and “failed to enlarge [my] spiritual life (Alcoholics Anonymous). Eventually, I again gave in to my addiction.

When I reached my bottom, the soil of my heart was finally broken and prepared to receive the true message of recovery. This is often the case for many of us—we need our rock bottom to soften the soil of our hearts. Yet, as the seed takes root and grows through our working of the Twelve Steps, slowly but surely, the fruit of a new relationship with God begins to flower. Let us always keep the soil of our hearts fertile so that we may continue to allow His grace to bring forth fruit in our lives and in the lives of those around us.

Reflection Questions

• Which type of soil do you identify with today? Is it soil that will allow you to be receptive to working your recovery and, if not, what can you do today to change this?
• What steps can you take today to work on your recovery and enlarge your spiritual life?

Daily Mass Readings

First Reading: Exodus 16:1-5, 9-15
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 78:18-19, 23-24, 25-26, 27-28
Gospel: Matthew 13:1-9

Reflection by Kevin S.