Break Up the Soil

January 29th, 2024
by Nathan Boyd

Scripture

Ephesians 3:14-21
14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, 15 the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. 16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources, he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. 17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. 18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then, you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. 21 Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations, forever and ever! Amen.

Devotion

For seeds to germinate and be successful, they must find their way to good and healthy soil where they can be nurtured and cared for over time. Matthew 13 shares a pivotal parable about seeds (the gospel) on four different soils. One soil represents a hard heart that cannot receive the word of God. Another soil is full of rocks; this type of soil means a heart that first gets the word, but because of no deep roots, when trouble comes, they bail. The third soil is full of weeds/thorns, representing the worries of life and the lure of wealth; this soil never brings about the fruit the seed is designed to produce. Finally, there is the good soil that brings about an abundant harvest. Matthew 13 is a powerful passage of scripture (I encourage you to meditate on it today) that explains a vital spiritual truth - the heart's condition determines the fruitfulness of life.

So many "Christians" today have hearts not representative of the fertile soil that brings about an abundant, fruitful harvest. In Paul's prayer to the church in Ephesus, he prays that they would learn to trust the Lord and allow Jesus to make his home in their hearts. Paul had experienced the goodness of God's presence in his life, and he wanted nothing more than to see God's love deeply rooted in other's lives. While the Holy Spirit plants the seeds, we are responsible for living consecrated lives where the soil of our hearts is fertile.

As we enter a season where we seek the Lord and ask Him what seeds of faith he desires for us to sow for future generations, we must be proactive in tilling up the soil of our hearts to allow his word and love to become deeply rooted. Below are some questions to wrestle with as you go throughout your day:

How has your heart grown hard?
What worldly things have crowded out the presence of God in your life?
How do you need to till up the soil of your heart in this season?

A.W. Tozer once said, "It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until he has hurt him deeply." Refining or tilling up the soil of our hearts is not easy, and it is certainly not for the faint of heart. If you decide to take this journey with Jesus, be prepared for pain as he slowly strips the things from your life that aren't of Him, but let me tell you, from my personal experience, it is worth it. You will never regret embracing the work that the Spirit wants to do in your life. Let's press in. Let's move forward. Let's sow seeds of faith for future generations!

Action Step

Spend time today wrestling through the questions above. As you listen to the Holy Spirit's voice, ask him for the courage to repent of any sins that he brings to your mind and ask him for the grace and strength needed to till up the soil of your heart.

Prayer

Let's pray Psalm 51:10-11 together today:

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Renew a loyal spirit within me.
11 Do not banish me from your presence,
and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and make me willing to obey you.

Posted in For Generations