Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And it happened, as he sowed, that
some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it.
Some fell on stoney ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately
it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up it was
scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. And some seed fell
among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.
But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up,
increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.
~ Luke 4:3-8
A good gardener knows that to produce the healthiest plants, you need to
prepare the soil properly. You could just go out today and throw the seeds on
the dirt, never watering them, never fertilizing them, and hope something
happens. It probably won't.
Before planting the seed, you need to prepare the soil to receive it. First
the ground needs to be broken up and tilled - until you do that, all you have
is hard dirt where nothing will grow. Farmers use plows to do this job - a
sharp blade cuts into the dirt, ripping it up and leaving scars behind. The
dirt needs to be softened and broken down, rocks need to be dug out, and then
the soil is fertilized and watered, until it's soft enough for the seed to
take root. It's not an easy process, and it's not a quick one, either. But
once that's been done, the seeds take root quickly, and grow into beautiful,
fertile plants.
Even so, we need to allow God to prepare the soil of our hearts for His seed,
the Word. Sometimes the process of letting God plow that fallow ground is
painful and heartbreaking, but the results of submitting to Him are wonderful.
His Word will produce fruit in your life that will strengthen you in your
walk, and encourage others as they see you grow.
What kind of soil do you have in your heart today?
Lord, help us to let You work in our hearts, to prepare us for the seeds of
Your Word. Sometimes it hurts, Lord, when You reach in and break up the
hardness we've allowed to creep in, but we know that the softening of our
hearts will produce growth. Bring us back into a closer relationship with You
and help us to keep the soil of our hearts fertile.
In Jesus' name,
Amen.
|
|
