The Kingdom of God is Within MeAugust 03, 2026

For the past three Sundays, I have heard readings about the Kingdom of God. Two of those readings included parables about the sower and the seed. The one that especially struck me was from Matthew 13:24–30, in which good seed is sown in a field. Then, during the night, an enemy comes and scatters weed seeds among the wheat. When the workers bring this to the landowner's attention, they ask whether they should pull out the weeds. He replies, "No. Let them grow together until the harvest."

My immediate thought was, Thank God. For I know myself. Sometimes I am the good seed, and sometimes I am the weed.

Even as I try to be the good seed, I often find myself slipping into weedy behavior that I recognize is not of the divine: my need to be perfect. And with that comes self-recrimination and guilt.

Recently, I read a quote attributed to Hildegard of Bingen: "At birth, our divine potential is folded up within us like a tent. It is life's purpose to unfold that tent."

When I look at how Jesus conducted himself, mercy and compassion were at the heart of everything he did.

When I become "weedy," I forget that the divine potential within me longs for that same mercy and compassion to be shown by me to myself.

Jesus reminds me that the Kingdom of God is within me. If life's purpose is to unfold the divine tent within, then I must accept both my good-seed moments and my weedy behaviors as part of the journey. Through each experience, I come to know the divine more deeply—even when I judge some of my behavior as "bad."

The wonderful truth is that God's love does not change. I am loved no matter what I do. I am given the space to experience life, to learn, and to slowly unfold my divine potential.

Sister Mary Eileen Boyle