A Distracted Heart
February 6, 2025
As the rain and snow come down from heaven and stay upon the ground to water the earth, and cause the grain to grow and to produce seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry, so also is my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It shall accomplish all I want it to and prosper everywhere I send it. You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills, the trees of the field – all the world around you – will rejoice. Where once were thorns, fir trees will grow; where briars grew, the myrtle trees will sprout up. This miracle will make the Lord’s name very great and be an everlasting sign of God’s power and love. Isaiah 55:10-13 TLB
The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. Luke 8:14 NLT
Jesus was familiar with the scrolls of the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, as were His Jewish listeners. Jesus had read from Isaiah to the hometown crowd in His first opportunity to be the Rabbi at the synagogue in Nazareth. Both Jesus and Isaiah knew that all soil has potential. There is unlimited potential in seemingly worthless dirt. But it must be tended.
Jesus agreed with Isaiah that where there once were thorns, magnificent trees and abundant harvests can grow. The soil is capable. The seed is powerful. But the soil must be tended and carefully managed. Weeds will grow. If you have ever had even the smallest landscaped area or garden, you know that is true. The day you plant, everything looks beautiful. But you must regularly inspect for those troubling weeds that seem to appear from thin air. If you don’t pull them out, soon they will take over your garden.
Spiritually that is true for us. We can grow the great harvest we intended when we received the seed of the Word of God if we keep our hearts tended and our priorities clear. But Jesus warned us that life’s worries, riches, and pleasures – some good things and some bad things – can equally choke out our growth and we never mature. Satan, our enemy, loves to sow weed seeds in our gardens. He will even take good things and turn them into weeds that choke out what God wants to grow. Things like sports, family, work, hobbies – all these are good, but they can end up taking precedence over our growing relationship with Him. The worries of life, like finances and health, can preoccupy our minds and choke out our growth as well. Jesus says that even if the weeds are things that aren’t sinful or harmful in themselves, they can take up so much space in our hearts and minds that they keep us from spiritual maturity.
You have good soil. God made you that way. But you are responsible for tending it.
- Take a little walk today with the Master Gardener through your heart and life. Ask Him to help you see the growing weeds, your preoccupations, before they choke out your life.