Devotionals for the Heart: Why we need to check the soil of our hearts

Check Your Soil
A devotional by Patricia Russell

“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”—Matthew 13:23 (NIV)

Ontario is the name of the province I’ve lived in for many years.

Growing up, I remember the jingle for a popular commercial went like this: “Good things grow in Ontario”. Grocery stores, farmers’ markets, and small posters on popsicle sticks bore these words.

Jesus Christ often used the illustrations of farmers, fields, and soil to convey the importance of growth. This message wasn’t difficult for His audience to comprehend because agriculture and farming were staples in the Middle East in that era. The industrial revolution had not arrived, so the people would understand well the process of planting seed and reaping in harvest time.

In chapter 13 of the Bible book of Matthew, Jesus told the parable of the sower who went out to plant seed. It was important to note that the quality of the soil determined the growing results of the seed. Some soil had stones, some fell by the wayside, while others took root and grew bountifully. Everyone hearing this parable would be challenged to consider the soil of their heart and decide for themselves if it was ripe for receiving seed and growing.

Personally, I know there have been times when my heart was hard, critical and religious. Just like a gardener who rakes up the soil and sees stones, one has to remove those stones from the soil before planting anything. If you plant a seed amongst stones, you soon notice that the plant is struggling to show any signs of growth. There is an obstruction to its growth. You have to take the stones out of that garden. Likewise, individually, we have to check the soil of our hearts.

Matthew 12:34 states out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. When we speak, it is a reflection of what is happening in our hearts. There is an old saying: “You cannot pour clean water from a dirty vessel.” We have to clean up the inside. We have to see the not so nice areas in our lives that are affecting our growth. We can do this by humbling ourselves and asking the Lord to show us and help us to acknowledge our areas of weakness. Confess our faults. God can handle it. As a matter of fact, He is patiently waiting for us to give our concerns to Him. When we read the Word of God (The Holy Bible) and we are convicted, this might mean there is a stone, an area in our life, God wants us to acknowledge. This is an area that needs to be, shall I say, “weeded out” so that we can grow and mature.

Self-examine your heart. Is there anything that is hindering growth in the Lord? Are there attitudes, mindsets or behaviors that other people have noticed and maybe brought to your attention? Ask the Lord to guide you. You don’t have to struggle alone. Ask a friend who is also following Jesus Christ to pray with you.

Let’s check the soil of our hearts and do some internal weeding so that with the grace of the Holy Spirit we can be a fruitful plant that brings glory to God.

Let’s Pray:

Heavenly Father, I want to grow strong in you. Show me where my heart needs to be tender and help me to respond to your Holy Spirit when you alert me to something that is not right in my life. In Jesus’s name I pray, Amen.

Song of Reflection: “A Heart Like Yours” by CeCe Winans. Listen to it here.

~*~
Author Bio:

Patricia is a worship leader, songwriter, speaker and compiler of her 2020 best-seller anthology Stronger Resilience: Stories to Empower the Mind, Body and Spirit, as well as Lord I Trust You: Words of Encouragement to encourage readers and share life lessons during her cancer journey. 

Patricia writes, speaks, and teaches on the power of God’s Word to heal and empower you to become all that you are purposed for. She has traveled internationally and shared her gifts with audiences to encourage, empower and share life lessons through word and song. Patricia has sung on national television broadcasts and shared the stage with several respected speakers including Anne Graham Lotz and Rev. E.V. Hill.

Her greatest joy is being married to her husband, Wayne, for 34 years. Together they serve the community through their local congregation as well as providing premarital and marriage coaching. They have two adult children, Raquel and Benjamin. As a two-time breast cancer overcomer, Patricia coaches’ others to develop resilience and live life to their fullest.

Patricia has released two gospel music recordings: “Draw Me Nearer” and “Lord, I Trust You”. In March 2022, she launched her podcast “Becoming Resilient” which can be downloaded wherever you get your podcasts and also seen on YouTube.

When not reading or studying, Patricia loves to eat Thai food and spend time with “Lucy” – her daughter’s Yorkie-poo who has taken up room in her heart.

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Connect with Patricia:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patrussellsings/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pat.russell.98877/
Email Patricia: patrussellsings@gmail.com

Devotionals for the Heart: A Spiritual Lesson Learned from farmers

Preparing for The Harvest
A devotional by Wade Webster

“But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” – Matthew 13:23 (NIV)

I spent a day driving in Kansas recently. There's quite a variety of terrain there, contrary to what certain movies show. Yes, there's a lot of wheat grown there. In fact, it was being harvested while I drove down the interstates. I wondered how many seeds were planted compared to the amount being collected. Old farm boys think about such things.

I had to be in Hays that evening so I could deliver first thing in the morning. The sun set as I drove up I-135. The clouds to the west were a long ways off as best as I could tell. Their tops were all I could see at first against the fading dusk. The crescent moon ducked behind them for a time only to poke its head back out briefly.

As the sky grew dark I witnessed and interesting phenomenon. There was lightning in those clouds that didn't reach the ground. I've seen this before. It's what's known as an electrical storm. One of the interesting things about these storms is that they seldom make rain. All of that churning in the atmosphere causes sparks but has no benefit for anyone.

Thunderstorms have many blessings attached to them. Not only do they drop rain to water the vegetation but the lightning also puts nitrogen into the water to aid in making plants green. Not so with electrical storms. They make flashes of light for witnesses to see and that's it.

It makes me think about the parable of the sower in Matthew 13. Seeds fall to the ground in several different soils. Most of the results are abysmal at best. The good soil is mentioned last in the story to show the desired result.

The wheat fields being harvested had been prepared well by the farmers to attain the results they were achieving. Weeds had been removed to assure the plants weren't starved of the nutrients being offered in the soil that was fertilized and tilled properly. Experience and hard work were paying off. These farmers didn't just talk about what needed to be done. They did it.

That electrical storm was all show with no results. I hope you aren't like that. Too many folks are. They talk a good talk but don't walk a good walk. They don’t put in the effort to make the necessary changes to bring lasting results for God's kingdom.

Reading the Bible is a good start but you must apply what you're learning to let it transform you. Once you change to become more like Jesus Christ, then amazing things will happen. People will notice something different about you. They'll be attracted to your behavior and grace. They'll ask you what your secret is. That's when the fruit will be harvested.

I pray that you have not already, you will become like the bountiful wheat fields I saw instead of the storm that dropped no rain.

~*~
Author Bio:

Wade Webster is a farm boy turned city slicker, heathen turned born-again Christian, truck driver turned writer doing his best to point folks to his best friend, Jesus Christ.

He currently lives in Plano, Texas.

Wade is the author of 100 Prayers of a Writer, a book that didn't begin as a book, just weekly prayers to a group of writer friends.

He enjoys spending time in nature, running for exercise and dark chocolate, though not necessarily in that order. Apart from driving 18-wheelers for a living he has a part-time job painting houses on the side...and the front and back and inside.

As a teenager, he told his friends he never wanted to be considered normal. So far he's done a pretty good job of living up to that aspiration.

Devotionals for the Heart: A Life Lesson Learned from Cultivating Soil

Cultivated Soil
A devotional by Sharon Musgrove

“He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain persons is void of understanding.” ~Proverbs 12:11 (KJV)

It’s growing season where I come from. Life is springing up everywhere. I’m behind in my gardening, barely having touched my vegetable beds. Just because I haven't worked my soil does not, however, mean that nothing is growing in my garden. Weeds and snails are already thriving and reproducing at a rapid rate. Without me working to cultivate and keep the garden fruitful, all sorts of invasive species take hold.

Life is complicated that way. Not just in the backyard garden, but in our spiritual gardens, our hearts, as well. Scripture in both the Old and New Testament give us warning after warning, encouragement after encouragement in the cultivation of our hearts.

Because I want a fruitful harvest, I began clearing my garden this week. In fact, I was preparing a new bed that hadn’t previously been part of the garden. As I removed the weeds and sifted out the rocks, I was reminded of the Parable of the Sower found in Matthew 13. In this parable, a farmer scatters seeds over his fields and they fall on four types of soil…a hard footpath, shallow soil with underlying rock, soil containing weeds, and deep fertile soil. Only the deep fertile soil produces an abundant harvest. In teaching, I’ve used this parable for many years. It’s easy to understand and provides a good visual.

As I worked, God planted a new seed for thought. I ran my hand through the newly tilled soil and heard, “You know the soil is ready for seed when it moves easily in the hand of the gardener.” I had just taken ground that was bound by root balls and littered with stones and was now running my hand through it with ease. Yes, I knew exactly what He was saying. This soil moved with direction, was soft and warm to the touch. This is how I know my heart is ready for new planting from God. My heart is soft, warm and moves with ease. It feels like love.

When I hear from God in the physical things I do, I pick up my Bible and read His words. It helps me affirm and retain what He is saying. Surprisingly, it was the garden story in Genesis that stood out, not the Parable of the Sower!

Genesis 2:5 (KJV) speaks of the creation story and of a state without vegetation in part because “there was not a man to till the ground.” In verse 15, the Lord put man into the garden of Eden “to dress it and keep it,” as well as Genesis 3:23 (KJV) stating, “…the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.”

We may think the Parable of the Sower is a clever story to help us understand that we have hard hearts or have thorns growing within us, but Genesis reveals that part of our purpose is to cultivate! God put Adam in a place of responsibility to continue what He started…to maintain and increase the fruitfulness of the garden…of humanity! If we do not continue to work our ground and “keep it,” then we don’t get to keep it! We lose ground.

This is evident in the consequence of Adam’s sin in both the exile from Eden and the cursing of the ground. What began for Adam as a life enjoying the fruitful trees God planted transitioned to laboring against thorns and thistles. To ignore our responsibility in maintaining loving hearts is a symptom of believing the lies that began in Eden. Proverbs 12:11 (KJV) states, “following a vain person.”

The wisdom in Proverbs foretells all! “He that tills the soil of his heart will be satisfied with bread.” While Genesis talks of the physical, “by the sweat of your face you will eat bread,” the Good News from Jesus is, “I am the bread of life: He that cometh to me shall never hunger…” (John 6:35 KJV).  It’s all the motivation I need to keep cultivating my soil! 

~*~
Author Bio:

Sharon Musgrove is a self-proclaimed sociologist. The opportunities opened to her, over the years, have led her on a fascinating journey observing human behavior. 

She has a diverse background in business, fitness and health industries. This background led her to a unique position writing curriculum and teaching for two private, Christ-based, residential recovery programs. Both recovery programs served women primarily from the homeless community.

Sharon has traveled multiple times to Kenya, serving on medical teams and teaching in the rural Maasai communities. She's been privileged to participate in Leadership camps for maturing young women. These annual camps have a mission of encouraging and empowering the impoverished, underprivileged, and often abused young Maasai girls.

Easily identifying personally with the brokenness of the women she's served, Sharon now sees all people as needing more encouragement regardless of cultural or socioeconomic status. Within these ministries, Sharon has witnessed the transformative power of loving words spoken to the broken-hearted. Sharing God’s love and witnessing its transformative power has become her passion.

In her leisure time, Sharon enjoys her garden, health food, travel, and a good story. She and her husband, Jeff, make their home in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. They have two grown children. Currently, Sharon is writing her first Christian historical fiction novel utilizing her study, experience, and understanding of self-destructive behaviors.

Devotionals for the Heart: Be Kind

People Getting Along With People
A devotional by Jo Huddleston

“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” ~Matthew 7:12 (NIV) 

We have seen America reel under unthinkable occurrences most wouldn’t have imagined could ever grace our history pages. Much of the good and the bad in our country springs from relationships between people.

We don’t all think alike nor do we come from similar backgrounds that influence our actions nor do we hold the same principles that govern our lifestyle. Differences are a distinguishing characteristic from person to person.

Differences tend to set us apart. We hold differing opinions on many issues and get excited about different things and cling to different values and virtues.

In light of all our differences, seeing eye-to-eye with everybody becomes a difficult task. Something that is needed or else we could never get along with many folks. Yes, something has to be done to the hard, dry soil of personalities before a right relationship can exist between people.

The Bible tells us a parable of the farmer, a sower of seeds (Matthew 13:1-10). Some of the seeds he planted fell along the path where the birds ate them. Some seeds fell on rocky places with little soil where they could not form adequate root systems and they died. Other seeds landed among thorns and were choked up by them. Finally, other seeds fell on good soil where they produced a fine crop.

Getting along with people can be likened to those seeds the farmer planted. All kinds of obstacles lie along the way to good human relationships. The rocky places and thorns are the differences we have.

In such cases, we must prepare the soil of differences so that we can realize a bumper crop of harmony and goodwill. The highest priority of preparation would be to put aside selfish desires. Putting other people first, loving one another. It’s all a thing of the heart.

Getting all these relationships correct is not easy. Just as farming is not easy. But following an unsuccessful crop, the farmer doesn’t quit. He goes out the next time, prepares the soil and plants again, striving toward that abundant, bumper crop.

Yes, the preparation indeed is often as important as the actual deed that is achieved. May we all continue preparing our hearts for a moral and ethical brotherhood of all people.

Embracing excellence, enthusiasm, courage, and compassion promises a wholesome outlook for America. The task will require generous measures of each of these principles, especially that of faith. America can shed her apathy and aim for a better today and greater tomorrows. She can submit to a divine purifying process and emerge a stronger, united country possessing these healing attributes.

I pray America chooses to turn toward her founding fathers’ worthy design for this nation.

~*~
Author Bio:

Jo Huddleston is a multi-published author who writes novels inspired by her fascination with the 1950s and her love of her native American South. 

Novels in her endearing Caney Creek series, her West Virginia Mountains series, as well as her stand-alone release, Tidewater Summer, are sweet Southern romance novels. 

Her writing career includes more than 200 articles and short stories, which have appeared in over 50 well-known Christian and secular publications including Guideposts and Decision. She's an online contributor to Christian Devotions Ministries (www.ChristianDevotions.us).

Jo’s devotions appear in eight anthologies and she wrote devotions on assignment and freelance for the following daily devotionals: Devotions, Open Windows, Pathways to God, The Quiet Hour, The Secret Place, and The Upper Room.

She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), the Literary Hall of Fame at Lincoln Memorial University (TN), and holds an M.Ed. degree from Mississippi State University. Visit Jo at www.johuddleston.com.