The Crummy Soil and the Traveling Plants

I should've learned from past experience, but I didn't. The Hired Hand tried to tell me it was a bad idea. Repeatedly. But I didn't listen. I was determined to have a garden. A big garden. So, we forged ahead.

We plowed and harrowed and tilled until I was sick of preparations. The Hired Hand told me the ground wasn't right. We needed soil testing and to add whatever it is this ground needs. Yes, the soil in the photo is the very pitiful soil in my garden. 

"It isn't ready." He said it until I couldn't stand to hear it any more.

I planted anyway. I'd grown a garden in that crummy soil before, and I was determined to do it again.

In retrospect, my garden had always struggled in that location, but I had planted so many seeds that I managed to get as much produce as I could use. 

Yesterday, I took a serious look at the plants in my garden and made a decision. The Hired Hand is right. The soil isn't ready for a garden. I looked at my raised beds, filled mostly with "barnyard fertilizer" and realized they aren't quite ready, either. They do have nutrients in the soil that make plants grow, and they are definitely the better choice for my struggling plants.

It wasn't what I wanted to do on a Saturday, but I spent a good portion of yesterday making a swap. I carefully dug up all the Brussels sprouts and planted them in one of my raised beds. Next, I dug up all the cabbage, then the red cabbage, then the onions. They all have a new home in a raised bed with much better soil. 

Before I'm done, all the plants will have a new home. They'll make it or they won't, but, in their new home, they will definitely have a better chance to thrive.

All this has, of course, brought the parable of the sower to mind. You probably remember that story. The sower scattered seed along the roadside. Some of it fell beside the road and the birds ate it. Other seeds fell on rocky soil, others among the thorns. None of those seeds survived. 

It was only the seeds that fell on good, fertile soil that grew a crop. 

Jesus said our hearts are just like the soil. Some are so enmeshed in the world that we hear the truth of Jesus, but can't understand it. Others make a start but don't follow through. Our hearts aren't prepared to persevere enough to learn the ways of God. Some of us allow the worries of this world to choke out the truth we know.

There are only a few, Jesus said, who hear the truth of Jesus, understand it, and apply it in their lives. It is those people whose lives bear fruit in ways we cannot even imagine. They bring forth thirty, sixty, even one hundred fold what was planted in them. 

When I look at the soil in my garden, I know it needs some serious work. When I look at the soil in my heart, I can see it needs some work, too. 

What about you? 

Today, let's take a look at our own hearts. Do we have hearts of fertile soil for God's truth or not? 

If not, are we willing to allow God the freedom to change the "soil" of our hearts? 

Will we allow Him to test us and modify us so that we can begin to be the fruitful disciples He intended?

"And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty." Matthew 13:23 nasb
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In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: Touching the House of God (http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2016/05/touching-house-of-god.html)

For those doing the Hosea study, the Chapter Four lesson is now live and here's the link: Chapter Four 
(http://lessonsindiscipleship.blogspot.com/2016/05/hosea-chapter-four.html)

In case you're interested, here are links to two other sower blog posts: The Roadside Seed and The Special Seed

#gardening #goodsoil #disciple 

Teach us to pray, part 31: The Kingdom of God in us

And He said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. 'Give us each day our daily bread. 'And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.'" (Luke 11:2-4 NASB)

We have been studying the model prayer of Jesus and are dissecting the phrase "Your kingdom come." Today, we begin to examine the Kingdom of God in us. (Jesus spoke so much about this that it may take a few days.)

John the Baptizer proclaimed, "The Kingdom of God is at hand." When Jesus arrived, He brought the Kingdom of God to earth. In Matthew 13, Jesus taught a series of parables to explain the Kingdom of heaven (or Kingdom of God) in us. In the parable of the sower, He described the way the Kingdom of God comes to us. The gospel of Jesus is the "word of the Kingdom". When the sower (those who share the good news of Christ) distributes the Word, it is much like a sower distributing seeds. Some of the seed falls beside the road and is eaten by birds, some falls on rocky soil or in the thorns. Some of the seed, however, falls on good soil and yields a great crop. The Word of the Kingdom comes to us in this same way. Not everyone receives the Word, but, for those who do, it yields an extravagant crop in our lives. 

Every time the seed falls on good soil, Jesus told the disciples, it yields a crop. In those instances in which the seed did not yield a crop, it was because the seed had fallen on inadequate soil. When the Word of the Kingdom enters my life, it will bear a crop. If I am sitting in a church pew every Sunday but am not being changed by the Word every day of the week, I am not bearing the crop for which Jesus was looking. If my life is not bearing "a crop", is not changed by the Word, I should be very concerned. 

If I am to be bearing a crop, I need to be able to recognize it. Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, described the fruit of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit. The deeds of the flesh, obviously, do not come from God and are not part of the crop resulting from the Word in our lives. These fleshly fruits include immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and similar behavior.(Gal. 5:19-21) If I have these things in my life, they are not pleasing to God, are not evidence of God's work in my life, and they need to go. It's as simple as that. 

When I allow the Word of God to take root in my life, it will begin to blossom into a crop of fruit that is recognizable to those around me. People who knew me before Christ will see a recognizable change in my behavior and in my demeanor. The fruit of the Spirit is the crop for which Christ longs, and includes love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. This is the fruit for which I should aim. 

My life will always demonstrate that which takes greatest precedence. Either the ways of the flesh will predominate, resulting in the fruit of the flesh, or the ways of God, resulting in fruit of the Spirit. Paul's words are so clear that they bear repeating. 

Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh 

with its passions and its desires.

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. 

Galatians 5:24-25 NASB

If I belong to Christ, then I will crucify my flesh and its passions and desires. I will not snuggle up to the passion of this world. Instead, if I belong to Christ, I will embrace the ways of Christ. If I embrace the ways of Christ, I will live by the Spirit and walk by the Spirit. I will live my life His way. 

This is so simple that I sometimes wonder why I have so much trouble with it. I belong to Christ, so I do things His way, and not my own. (Or that's what I should do!) The Kingdom of God has come to earth (in Christ) and it now dwells in me (by His Spirit). It is my responsibility to demonstrate the Kingdom of God to the world by the life I live. 

What a difference I could make if I actually lived the way I say I believe! What a difference we all could make if we lived the way we say we believe! 

As we approach Holy Week, let us examine our hearts and lives for the fruit we bear. Let's make sure we are sharing the Kingdom of God with our words and our deeds. Let's be sure the world sees the fruit of the Spirit in us.

The God Soil: Part Six (Luke. 8:15)

But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. (Luke 8:15 KJV)

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23 NASB

The Great Commision of Jesus was His last instruction to the followers before He returned to heaven. Go and make disciples. He expected His disciples to share the Good News throughout the world, teaching others His words, and helping them to become disciples of Jesus themselves. When we think of "bearing fruit", we often assume that refers to making disciples, and it does. 

"Making disciples" is not the only kind of fruit-bearing we need to do, however. Before we head out to make disciples, we need to first be disciples. To understand what the fruit of discipleship entails, we need look no further than Paul's letter to the Galatians. He listed the fruit of the Spirit so that there could be no doubt. 

 love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control

There is a tendency to think that these fruit are like spiritual gifts. We can have one or the other, but certainly not all of them at once. Not so, my friends. The expectation is that the work of the Spirit of God will produce all these characteristics in our lives. In fact, He will continue to work in us until they are present in our lives. 

When the fruit of the Spirit is present in our lives, the evidence of discipleship is there for all to see. How can this amazing  array of characteristics be present in our lives? When the seed of the Word of God is planted in a pure, honest, obedient heart and allowed to grow, it will produce the fruit of the Spirit. 

You may well ask, what if I need more patience? More faithfulness? More self-control? More love? If more fruit is needed, perhaps the starting point should be more seed, more of the Word of God in the form of Bible study. Don't forget, though, that the Seed needs fertile soil, free of impediments, to growth. 

What about our hearts? Are the fruit of the Spirit present in our lives and visible for all to see?  If not, why not?

Today pray that we and loved ones would be so filled with the fruit of the Spirit that all will recognize our Lord from whom they came. 

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Link to last night's post (praying for terrorists) is here: http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2014/07/praying-for-terrorists-nasir-al-wuhayshi.html

The Good Soil: Part Five (Luke 8:8,15)

And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. (Luke 8:8, 15 KJV)

For disciples of Christ, their great desire should be fruitfulness, fulfilling that last command of our Lord to make disciples. In this pasage, Jesus explained how to become fruitful. It is not a byproduct of a fancy degree or untiring work, although both may be important parts of the process. Fruitfulness comes only as a result of the Sower's Seed, the Word of God, planted in the fertile soil of our hearts. 

Before we go further, it is vital to recognize that our hearts are the receptacle for the Seed, but it is the Seed that brings the fruit. Without it, there can be no fruit. Hearts that long to be productive must allow that vital Seed to be planted and grow, and that requires time spent in Bible study and contemplation. It requires obedience to the Word. 

There is one more very important characteristic of the disciple that is fruitful. Patience. The word translated as patience is hypomonē, and it comes from two root words that, taken together, mean "to abide under".  The word indicates constancy in the face of trials and incredible opposition. This is the kind of perseverance that endures all ills, all manner of bad treatment and discouraging circumstances, yet never gives up. 

It is the same patience with which missionaries serve and work for years without seeing a convert. This passage indicates that the Seed that finds a home in fertile soil and is nurtured consistently will bear fruit in time, if we are willing to persevere. It does not suggest that the waiting will be easy. 

The problem with waiting is that we do not like it, and we do not want to do it. I well remember overly-enthusiastic evangelistic acquaintances who were so aggressive with their tracts that I was delayed in finding a vital relationship with Christ. Impatience for fruit is common, and I confess to a tendency toward impatience myself, but it is counterproductive to the cause of Christ. 

If we are to bring forth fruit with patience, then patience is what we must have!  There is nothing in Scripture to indicate that the Seed of the Word can be rushed. In fact, 2 Peter makes it clear that God will not be hurried, and He is, Himself, waiting to allow more hearts to turn toward Him. 

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9 NASB)

Have you planted seeds of truth that have not yet borne fruit? Wait. Wait prayerfully, but wait, just as our Lord does. In due time, He will bring the harvest. 

Today, pray that we and our loved ones will have fertile soil that welcomes the Seed of the Word of God and nurtures it until the harvest comes.

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Link to last night's post:  http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2014/07/shopping-for-rings.html

The Good Soil (Luke 8:8, 15)

Other seed fell into the good soil, and grew up, and produced a crop a hundred times as great." As He said these things, He would call out, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance. (Luke 8:8, 15 NASB)

The good soil. What a wonderful analogy!  This soil is fertile, watered, and free of rocks and thorns. The imagery is one of rich, well-tilled garden soil. When the seed lands in this rich earth, it sprouts quickly, grows rapidly, and produces both a lush, healthy plant and an abundant harvest. 

Our lives of faith are supposed to be like the seed that lands in fertile soil. Everything we need to be successful and productive in our faith has been provided. Our job is to keep our heart free of those rocks and thorns, keep the living water flowing, and allow growth to occur. It's our job to stay close to Jesus so that we can become all He intended. 

Note that it is success in our faith and productivity in our faith that is the goal, not success by the world's standards. We who are so abundantly blessed in material things can easily forget that most of our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world walk out their faith in far different circumstances. Many of them would say that the relative poverty and persecution they face allows fewer distractions and a closer relationship with Christ. 

At the end of our lives, the question will not be how much "stuff" have we accumulated, but how much faithfulness have we exhibited and how much fruit have we borne. 

Let's take a look at our own lives today. Do we have "fertile soil" in our hearts? Are there thorns, rocks, or drought that hamper our growth? Are we bearing fruit?  What changes do we need to make?

Pray today that we and our loved ones would have such fertile, well-watered soil that we would consistently, constantly bear fruit. 

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A matter of priority (Luke 8:7,14)

Other seed fell among the thorns; and the thorns grew up with it and choked it out.

The seed which fell among the thorns, these are the ones who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to maturity. (Luke 8:7, 14 NASB)

The outcome for this seed was sad, sad. The seed fell in fertile soil and grew. It had everything it needed, but thorns were growing around it. Jesus compared those thorn plants to "worries, riches, pleasures of life". Thorns are distractions, and significant ones, that do require attention but are allowed to take priority in our lives. When the pursuit of riches or pleasure is allowed to become more important and of higher priority than the pursuit of holiness, no fruit is produced. No godly fruit, that is. When the worries of life, valid though they may be, are allowed to take priority and focus over faith, there will be no spiritual fruit. 

There is no doubt that responsibilities, finances, and relaxation are all important areas of our lives and demand considerable attention. Jesus was not implying that they should be neglected. He was teaching that those areas, when allowed to crowd out the pursuit of holiness, can choke our faith and stop all growth, preventing any fruit-bearing. How tragic! The goal of the Christian life is maturity and fruit. Disordered priorities can completely halt our progress!  

What you might not realize (unless you have some experience with weeds and thorns) is that the growing seedling can easily be overlooked in the midst of the thorns. If the thorns and weeds are dealt with from the beginning, the growing plant will be healthier and grow much faster. The really nice part of dealing with thorns and weeds is that, once all the weeds are dealt with initially, a constant vigilance will allow any additional weeds to be removed quickly and before injury to the plant develops. 

Do you have thorns that are choking your growth? If you are not sure, do a survey of the fruit in your life. If you are not bearing fruit (making a difference in the Kingdom of God), perhaps you have some "thorns" with which you need to deal. It's a matter of priority. Make sure yours are priorities that matter. 

Pray today that we and our loved ones will recognize those thorns in our heart that crowd out growth in our Christian walk and that, seeing, we will deal decisively with our priorities in order to become the mature men and women of faith we were saved to become. 

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Today is the deadline to volunteer for "eight days of hope" and help build homes for Tupelo's tornado victims. Their website is www.eightdaysofhope.com

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Link to last night's post is here: http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2014/06/working-together-denim-chair.html

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The Problem of Rocky Soil

Other seed fell on rocky soil, and as soon as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture.

Those on the rocky soil are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no firm root; they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away. (Luke 8:6, 13 NASB)

The soil for today's consideration is rocky soil. Rocky soil is great for allowing drainage, but bad for holding water. In an arid land with little rainfall, rocky soil is deadly for seeds. In this particular soil, there is enough nourishment and moisture in the soil to allow sprouting. If extra water were provided, the seed could likely make it to fruition. Without extra care, however, the sprout will wither and die. When the withering begins, there is a point where an infusion of water can still revive the plant, but the window of opportunity is small. 

Jesus compared the seed that fell on rocky soil to those who hear the word of God, receive it joyfully, and are full of enthusiasm about their salvation. They do not develop firmly anchored roots, however, and succumb to temptation when it comes. 

They are like a withered seedling in desperate need of water. Used to symbolize a variety of things in Scripture, water likely symbolizes the Spirit of God here. In John 7:37-39, Jesus speaks of living water by which men would never thirst again as a description of the Holy Spirit. Knowing that, the reason for the withering becomes apparent, doesn't it? The new believer embraces his new-found faith with enthusiasm but never allows the Holy Spirit to help him grow or help him resist temptation. Without the aid of the Spirit's indwelling, it is impossible to have victory over sin, as he soon finds. 

Once withering begins, an infusion of the Spirit can bring refreshment to his soul and joy back to his heart. Unfortunately, that early foray back into the "old life" can be very difficult to leave. I'm not sure we, as the church, have done all we should to help new believers access the Spirit-aid they need to grow to fruition. 

What about us? Have we allowed the withering to begin in our own lives? Are our loved ones "withering"? 

Pray today that we and our loved ones will get still before The Lord and allow Him to send streams of Living Water to refresh our souls. 

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Link to last night's post (first in the Praying for Terrorists series) is here: http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2014/06/praying-for-terrorists-ayman-al-zawahiri.html

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If you have signed up for email subscription, don't forget to click on the confirmation link to activate your subscription. If you have problems, please message me for assistance. 

The Roadside Seed (Luke 8:5,12)

"The sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell beside the road, and it was trampled under foot and the birds of the air ate it up.

Those beside the road are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they will not believe and be saved. (Luke 8:5, 12 NASB)

Here begins the first soil-type. The sower went out to sow the seed (the Word of God), sowing as he went. In my mind's eye, I see a man with a big bag of seed, reaching in for handfuls and casting them out as he walks along the path. Some of the seed lands well away from the road, in the most fertile soil, but some of the seed falls along the roadside. Before the seed can find root, however, it is trampled by passersby and snatched up by the birds. None of the roadside seed lands in enough soil to grow easily. 

Jesus explained to the crowd of disciples that this represented the people who heard the Word of God but never believed. They never believe, He said, because the devil steals it from their heart before they have time to consider it and accept the truth. A quick snatch and the chance is gone. Whispered suggestions to a seeking heart like, "Later" or "How out of style!" can be just enough to delay a decision indefinitely. 

One might think the roadside seed was not important because plenty of other seed fell on good soil, but every seed is important because seed that takes root represents a life that is changed. The concerning thing about roadside seed is the proximity of their resting place to the sower. The seeds that land along the roadside are the seeds that land closest to the sower. How tragic to have those closest seeds snatched away!

Roadside seed can sprout and bear fruit, but only if it is protected and allowed to remain. Although not traditionally considered a parable about prayer, this parable suggests the absolute imperative of protecting the closest seed from the enemy of the sower. Protection from the wiles of the devil begins with steadfast prayer. 

What kind of reception do the seeds of the Word of God find in our hearts? Are they easily snatched away?  What about the hearts of those closest to us, our dearly loved ones? 

Pray today that every seed will find a welcoming reception in fertile soil, especially the roadside seed in the hearts of those we love the most. 

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Link to last night's post: http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2014/06/sharing-in-their-suffering-helping-in.html

What will you do with Jesus? (Luke 8:4-9)

When a large crowd was coming together, and those from the various cities were journeying to Him, He spoke by way of a parable: "The sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell beside the road, and it was trampled under foot and the birds of the air ate it up. Other seed fell on rocky soil, and as soon as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. Other seed fell among the thorns; and the thorns grew up with it and choked it out. Other seed fell into the good soil, and grew up, and produced a crop a hundred times as great." As He said these things, He would call out, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear." His disciples began questioning Him as to what this parable meant. (Luke 8:4-9 NASB)

Remember the crowd in the previous post? It was full of every sort of listener from truly transformed disciples (including those twelve apostles)  to seekers who wanted to know more to skeptics to critics. Everyone heard the same words. At the end of His parable, Jesus said something very surprising. "He who has ears, let him hear."  

We don't know if the crowd was surprised by this, but they must have been. They all had ears, and two of them. Of course they had ears! What kind of comment was Jesus making? They had ears and they could hear, but for many of the people, His words made no sense. Jesus was suggesting that they hear with more than the two appendages on the sides of their heads. He wanted them to hear with their hearts. He was saying, "Think about this, and figure out what it means for yourselves." 

He didn't want them to simply understand the symbols in the story, He wanted them to ponder His words long enough to understand both the symbols and how the story related to their own hearts. Which kind of soil did they have in their hearts? 

What did the crowd do in response to His challenge? It seems that most people drifted away. Maybe they felt He was being purposely vague and thought it was too much trouble to parse it out. Maybe they didn't care enough to try to figure it out. 

Regardless, it was only that small segment of the group, the disciples, who were given a clarifying explanation. (Don't forget that the apostles were only a twelve-man team that had been separated out from the disciples). They received understanding and insight only when they asked for it.  

Before we look at the different soils in this story, we need to ask one important question. Are we in the group of disciples who want to understand in order to become more like Jesus or in the larger group who want to hear His words but not allow them to work in us? Are we eager to be more like Jesus or do we prefer to stay exactly as we are? 

A large crowd of people attended the preaching service where Jesus spoke these words.  Every person in the crowd had a choice to make. What would they do with the words Jesus spoke? It was only those who were willing to be changed by Christ who stayed close. The rest listened, made their choice, and walked away. 

What kind of choice will you make about the words of Christ? Will you let Him change you or insist on staying exactly as you are?  What will you do with Jesus?  

Today, pray that we and our loved ones will long to understand His words and obey. Pray that the days of "walking away" will come to an end and we will stay close by Him. 

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Here's the link to last night's post: http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2014/06/loose-teeth.html