The hard heart, the shallow heart, the crowded heart - each prevents the seed from burrowing down into a place in the heart where it is protected and it can thrive.
Psalm 1:1-6
1 Blessed is the man Who walks
not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the
path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the
scornful;
2
But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law
he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That
brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also
shall not wither; And whatever he does shall
prosper.
4
The ungodly are not so, But are
like the chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the ungodly
shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the
congregation of the righteous.
6 For the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
My part is to be sure there's nothing blocking and that I allow the words of God's truths to sink deep by meditating on them and by walking in them. I think that meditation and application make pathways for the seed to go deeper and bear more fruit. Otherwise, I will walk away personally unaffected and unfruitful for His kingdom.
When we plant by the rivers of water, we will bear fruit, we won't whither and we will prosper. What a powerful seed It is!
I was thankfully reminded how important it is to be continually preparing my heart to hear, receive, and act upon the Word. I can't expect to have the Word take effect if I don't have a soft place for it to grow. Weeds grow so quickly, and the roots can be quite deep. It is my part to present myself for a good cleanup job (confession and repentance), a bit of some soil tilling (conviction from the Holy Spirit,) and keeping myself watered (the Living Water of the Word) all work together for my good, and God's glory.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the mental picture, Pastor! John Deere will never look the same to me.
As Pastor Dale taught Sunday morning I was reminded of Colossians 2:7 NLT Let your roots grow down into Him and draw up nourishment from Him, so you will grow in faith, strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving for all He has done.
ReplyDeleteHealthy soil, fruit producing soil takes work! To see this as truth in my earthly reality all I have to do is look in my yard. With no effort the weeds are popping up ALL OVER and could easily over take the sweet fruit (the desirable plants). It takes enduring patience’s and consistent effort to pull the weeds. Praise God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit for He wants to break up my fallow ground, pull the weeds that choke His word out of my life, and finally produce fruit. I think of fruit as being more Christ like. Being transformed into His likeness... more loving, more giving, more of Him and less of me. I am blessed to be a child of the living God and to sit under strong teaching allowing God to accomplish His purpose. As I partake of His mercy and grace may my life overflow with thanksgiving, praise and worship.