MONTHLY DEVOTIONAL FOR 20 SEPTEMBER
September 20, 2025
FEAST OF SAINT MATTHEW, APOSTLE AND EVANGELIST – 21st SEPTEMBER
September 21, 2025
TODAY’S GOSPEL READING
20 SEPTEMBER, 2025
Luke 8:4-15
When a great crowd gathered and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable:
“A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up.
Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture.
Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it.
Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.” As he said this, he called out, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!”
Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant.
He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that ‘looking they may not perceive, and listening they may not understand.’
“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.
The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away.
As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.
But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.”
THE GOSPEL OF THE LORD!
REFLECTION
The Gospel of Luke reminds us that God’s Word is like seed sown in different soils, which also shows different growths in faith. Some hear but quickly forget, while others allow life’s worries or temptations to dominate over their faith. But those with open and steadfast hearts receive the Word, nurture it, and bear fruit. We are called to be cultivating soil to listen deeply, hold on faithfully, and allow God’s Word to transform our lives and bless others.
PRAYER
Lord, thank you for your Word, which is the seed of life. As you are the sower, patiently casting your truth, I ask that you prepare my heart to be good soil. I pray that my heart would not be like the path, hard and trampled, where the seed of your Word is snatched away by the devil before it can take root. I pray my heart would not be like the rocky ground, where the seed springs up with initial joy but has no depth to endure. In times of temptation, testing, and trouble, help me not to fall away. I pray my heart would not be like the thorny ground, where the seed is choked by the anxieties, riches, and pleasures of this life. Instead, I ask that you make my heart like the good soil, a noble and good heart that hears your Word, holds it fast, and bears fruit with patience. Cultivate within me the virtues of faith, endurance, and spiritual focus, so that your truth can take deep root and flourish. May the fruit I bear be a testament to your power at work within me, so that you alone may receive all the glory. Amen
