What kind of soil?

From today's reading:  Hear then the parable of the sower.  Matthew 13:18  We all know about the seed sown on the path and the rocky ground, among the thorns and on the good soil.  Some people talk about us being each kind of soil at different times in our lives and there is some truth in that for all of us.  

Some talk about our being the sower and that we are to go out and sow the word everywhere in the hopes that some will take root and grow.  I usually fall into the latter category. But I wonder if there is another category - one in which we understand that God is the sower - and that he has sown the word into all sorts and conditions of people.  

I wonder if we need to be more aware of (and accepting of) people who have received the Word even when they are not like us.  Sitting in our churches today, we often have people who are all sorts of soil.  Just because we are sitting in the church doesn't mean that we are all in the same place spiritually.  

I've heard people complain about the so-called hypocrites in church.  My answer is, don't expect people in church to be perfect.  And if they are truly Christian, they won't expect you to be perfect either.  We can all grow together, striving to be the best we can, but we need to remember that Jesus most often chose to hang out with tax collectors and sinners rather than the (self-)righteous.