When I moved into my house, there was no driveway. It had a makeshift pathway made of years of packed down gravel with a carport sitting over it. After I got settled in, I had a wonderful family friend come and move my carport to a new location in anticipation for a concrete driveway. What was left below where that carport stood was some stony ground. Rocks and hard dirt that went about six inches into the ground. Just until the last month, I had a mulch bed sitting there with nothing in it, because I knew it would be tough to get anything to take root. Well, because I am quite stubborn at times, I bought a hydrangea to plant right in the center. Let me just say, you should have seen my husband trying to dig through all those rocks to get down to good soil to plant my beautiful pink and blue hydrangea! We added some good soil and as of right now she is still thriving. But what if I had just thrown that bush in with that stony ground? I am pretty sure she wouldn’t have made it.
I was quite joyous when I found that bush at the local Home Depot and brought it home to plant, but if it would have been set into that stony ground, the ending would not have been happy. I would have a withering bush…that would eventually die!
That’s just how the seed that falls on the stony ground is in Mark 4: 5:7/16-18. Jesus said the soil of this person’s heart receives the Word of God with joy, but because it isn’t deeply rooted, because of persecution or pressure from Satan, the world or our biggest enemy…our mind, the joy is short-lived. If I had to give an example, it is the ones that are high on Jesus one day and then about ready to jump off the edge of a cliff the next day. They have no roots in the Word. It’s a surface relationship that wavers based on their circumstances. Well, guess what? Jesus is above our circumstances and situations!
How do we get past the stony ground? We must do like my sweet hubby did…clean out the rocks, the little bit of bitterness or anger maybe that is hiding within us. Maybe you have a little bit of doubt or worry that’s lying around in your heart. Shovel those rocks out, my friend. Add some good soil from the Word into your heart! We are getting to what is going to happen in that good soil…and it makes me excited. I won’t spoil things just yet. 😉
Don’t allow your circumstances to dictate your growth in a Father that doesn’t have plans for nothing but a harvest. His plan for you is not to be scorched and withered by this world, but to bloom! Let’s start “chunking rocks” (how’s that Southern lingo for ya) out of our heart today, so that we can flourish for the Lord!
