Worship
“Tend” by Emmy Rose and Bethel Music
Scripture
“And when a great crowd was gathering and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable, “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.””
“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.” -Luke 8:4-8, 11-15, ESV
Personal Reflection on Heart Transformation
When I was 20, I remember sitting in this women’s conference and the speaker discussing the soil of my heart during one of the segments before lunch. We went through an exercise where we asked Jesus to walk through the fields of our heart and reveal to us the weeds that had grown up. I remember the Lord so clearly revealing deep hurt that a boy had caused me when I was 15. He wanted more physically than I was willing to give him. In exchange, I experienced deep rejection, especially when he said to me, “I used you anyway.” Those are painful words to a young innocent heart. I watched as the Lord showed me how He was taking these weeds, one by one, and pulling them out so that no root remained. There were weeds of regret, unforgiveness, anger, resentment, pain, shame, etc. As soon as Jesus did this, I was free and able to heal and move on, never to harbor unforgiveness toward that boy again. The Lord had another for me to love who would not cause me that kind of pain. But first I had to have the soil of my heart weeded out so there was room for new seeds to be planted that would bear life in and through me.
Four Fields is a term we use in evangelism and discipleship and a tool we train missionaries in all over the world. But for this devotional today, I want to head in another direction to allow a space for Holy Spirit to walk with you through the soil of your heart to bring some beautiful revelation. This devotional will be a little bit different than the others, more like a guided tour just for you and Jesus.
Lord, I ask that You would take Your daughter by the hand and walk with her through the soils of her heart to bring insight, revelation, healing, and freedom, in the name of Jesus and by the blood of Jesus.
Examining Different Heart Conditions
First Soil: The Path
This is a place of harder ground where many feet have trod; the ground is hard pressed. It’s a known pathway in your heart; places your feet have walked many a time. There are seeds being thrown on this path—perhaps seeds of vision for a new road ahead, new avenues of discovery, new relationships, and new frontiers. God wants to get your attention as you go. You see the seeds of vison on this pathway, and so does the enemy.
Pray with me:
Lord, have I forsaken seeds of vision and opportunity, allowing the enemy to come and steal them? Have I wandered off the path of Your plan for my life because of my own agenda or believing a lie that You aren’t faithful or good?
Is Holy Spirit showing you seeds the enemy stole along familiar paths in your life and heart? Ask Him to forgive you for forsaking them and to breathe His breath of life on them to cause them to open and bear life.
Second Soil: Rocky Ground
This is a landscape in your heart that is similar to the weeds in the garden of my heart. Rocks indicate hard places that have covered fertile ground so that new seeds could not fall there in great depth. There are too many hindrances to the seeds taking root. Distractions, busyness, disappointment, hope deferred, boulders of unbelief have created spiritual barriers.
Pray with me:
Lord, show me what the barriers and boulders are in this soil of my heart that keep me from living in a place of abounding trust and joy. Will You take these rocks and throw them into the depth of the sea?
As you name the rocks and boulders, see the nail pierced hands of Jesus pick them up and toss them into the heart of the ocean.
Third Soil: The Thorns
This is a soil setting where there is obviously everything needed to grow a plant. But something has come in to defile the space and choke out life that is found entirely in Jesus. There are such things as love of money, worship of things, pursuit of the world, addictions, shame, guilt, regret, and the indulgences of the flesh. The life of Christ is choked out by the flesh and the pursuit of the world. Read through Galatians 5:19-21 below, and if any of these are highlighted before the Lord, simply repent and return to Him.
“The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Pray with me:
Jesus, thank You for Your blood that covers all of my sin. Thank You for the forgiveness that is found in You. Thank You for taking the penalty I should be paying and crucifying it to the cross. Would You cut the root system of these thorns so that they no longer bear life. Will you rip this thorny vine of sin, going all the way back to Adam, from my bloodline and my life. I repent of what You have shown me, and I take Your hand as we walk to freedom and wholeness and healing.
Good Soil: Fertile Ground for Growth
Fourth Soil: The Good Soil
This is soil that has been fertilized and cultivated by Father, Jesus, and Holy Spirit. It’s the receptive, hungry places in your life that receive seeds of life that will bring glory to the Lord in and through you. These seeds represent fruitfulness, abundance, holiness, righteousness, the fruit of the Spirit, expansion, promotion, joy, and depth of character, to name a few. This soil has been tilled by the hands of Jesus, and it is ready to bear even more crops, 100 times what was sown.
The Promise of Growth
The Lord is with you in all of the soils of your life, but this one is one He takes great joy to tending. This soil has been fertilized with the tears, prayers, and faithful obedience you have deposited in it. It has been watered with the grace and mercy of God. And now it’s going to produce a harvest that far outweighs anything you have known. These are the days where the glory of God is going to be on display in and through your life because Jesus wants to be made known in and through you. As you see the seeds Jesus is pointing out to you, look and see that the days of dormancy are done. It’s time for them to spring forth, sprout, and grow!
“For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.” -Isaiah 61:11
May your life be one that causes nations to praise! As I have said in so many writings prior to this one, we have nations and peoples God has assigned to us. I pray that this season is the season for you to be released to go and find them and bring them to Jesus. Bring them the greatest news ever told. You don’t have to wait to get free and healed. Sometimes people need you in the healing process or the place of brokenness to minister with beautiful authenticity. They just need us to courageously step into a moment to bring them the One they are desperately searching for.
Go and bear good fruit from all the gardening you have done today, in the mighty name of Jesus!
