Today’s Gospel reading – The Parable of the Weeds depicts a grim picture. The farmer who worked tirelessly on his field and perhaps invested all his time and money in it, learns that the enemy sowed weeds in his field. For a modern mind it is hard to grasp the true scope of the danger. The farmer was facing a real possibility of losing most of the harvest on which his livelihood and his family’s survival depended. So it sounds quite rational and reasonable to hear the request of the worried workers who came to him encouraging to take quick action and remove the weeds. To their surprise and astonishment, the farmer asked them to wait. He knew very well that at the early stages of their growth wheat and darnel look almost exactly alike. And as much as he probably desired to do something, the best course of action was actually to wait and be patient.

The ancient parable of the weeds highlights a very modern problem. It reminds us about the dangerous fast pace of modern life. It often deprives us from the opportunity to emotionally and spiritually be fully present in our decisions, actions and communications. The hectic race to catch up with everything, address every challenge, solve every problem, express opinions, make decisions, say and do things are all too often driven by deep and dark fear. Fear of being left behind and losing control of opportunities and situations if we don’t decide fast enough. Fear of being overtaken by our challenges if we do not act fast enough. The constant pressure to do, decide and act fast fractures the walls of souls and allows the dangerous and toxic noise and restlessness to spread inside, stealing our inner spiritual peace, stillness and joy in Christ.

Most importantly and dangerously, such a way of life prevents us from forming spiritual perspective and awareness of our decisions and actions. It effectively filters out reflection, prayer, and God himself out of our decision-making and problem-solving process. What if God had another plan for us? What if He had prepared another path for us to choose? What if there was another decision to make, another way and time to act?

The ability to control the speed of our thoughts and actions, emotional and mental reactions, and responses through the spiritual disciplines of prayer, reflection, silence, and stillness are perhaps the most critical and essential skills for modern life. They create precious and life-changing opportunities for us to step into the divine perspective of our lives and allow God to step into our reality, show us another way and path, another thing to say and do, another decision and choice to make, another time to act, another opportunity and possibility to embrace and follow.