Prepare the Soil

The condition of your heart matters.

You may have heard or read the Parable of the Sower before in Luke 8:4-15. I recently read this passage and when reading this text, I had to take a hard look at myself and realize that my heart has resembled each type of soil…

The soil by the wayside, the rocky soil, the thorny soil, and the soil that is good ground.

I had one of those moments when I knew the Word of God was reading me. I had to admit that what I was reading is actually talking about me and no one else.

It stings, but that’s the point.

Hebrews 4:12 states that the word of God is living and powerful and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Also as we continue to grow more in our faith, we tend to be more proud than humble. Pride has us pointing our fingers at others without first examining ourselves.

And even when we are producing fruit and living in complete surrender to God, John 15:2 reminds us that God will trim us to produce even more fruit.

The Parable of the Sower is further explained in Luke 8:11-15. The seed is God’s word and the soil speaks to the matter of the heart. Luke 8:15 (KJV) reads,

“But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.”

So every day, we should prepare our hearts to be good soil to receive God’s word.

Yahweh knows our true intentions. Yahweh knows whether or not our hearts are inclined toward Him.

So, how is the condition of your heart?

Here are some questions to answer that will help you uncover your true intentions and get to the heart of your actions, decisions, or feelings:

• What do you want the outcome to be and who will the outcome benefit?
• Are you responding out of emotions or does your response reflect wisdom and is well thought out?
• What are the costs and the long-term consequences of your decision, whether positive or negative?

Here are some questions to answer that will let you know whether your heart is inclined toward God or away from Him:

• Do you desire God more than what or who He has blessed you with?
• If yes, then how do your actions reflect that?
• If not, then in what ways is that thing or person more valuable to you than God?

How do you feel about your answers? Were they difficult to face? Were you tempted to “clean up” your responses to make them easier to work through?

Vulnerability isn’t always pretty. For me to answer these questions truthfully, I have to ask the Holy Spirit to help me be vulnerable and honest with myself…

Because how else do we change the posture of our hearts if we can’t face the reality of where we truly stand now?

We have to examine our hearts daily. Tilling the soil isn’t easy, but the yield is worth it.