Devotional:

“That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A Sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose, they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.”

Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

’You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.’
For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed,
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’

But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

’Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.’”

— Matthew 13:1-23

Every time I read this parable, it reminds me of a science experiment in elementary school. You know, the one that would have four cups full of four different types of soil, and you would bury a seed in each cup and see which one grew the fastest? Don’t act like you didn’t do that one, too. It’s probably the most used science experiment in the world, other than the volcano. But volcanoes were too messy for my mom, so it was the ole cup o’ dirt experiment in my house.

Jesus told parables to get his point across. Why? Because we are not good listeners. It’s just a fact that we have the attention span of a flea and the imagination of a child. We can listen better when we have something that draws us in. Something that we can relate to and understand.

Farmers understand the parable of the sower. Tax collectors understood the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in Luke 18. He also demonstrated his majesty by performing miracles in front of fishermen, pharisees and noblemen. He knew that by speaking alone, lots would be lost without a story or a sign.

This is still true today. Why do you think Joby tells so many stories? Because we are terrible listeners!

In verse 9, after telling the parable, Jesus says, “He who has ears, let him hear.”  Hmmm. This is not just a random ending to a story like, “Thanks for listening to me today, hope you come back tomorrow.” No way. He is saying, are you ready? Is your heart ready for what is about to happen? Are you prepared? Don’t just listen to the story and walk away. Hear the story and receive God’s blessing. Jesus knew that some would walk away that day unphased and some would walk away changed.

He knows our hearts, our questions, our fears. He knows all of it. Nothing is outside of the knowledge of God!

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

”For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor?”
“Or who has given a gift to him
that he might be repaid?”

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”

— Romans 11:33-36

So, what keeps you from having a heart that is prepared and ready for revival? Only you can answer that. Let’s read below. Which category do you fall in?

Maybe you aren’t listening. You aren’t even trying to listen. Or you just don’t want to listen. Maybe you tried for a while, but it didn’t sink in. Then, when He talks to you, you can’t hear because the things of this earth have already taken all your listening space and attention. You are the path that the seed falls on. Right on the surface, trampled and unprepared. The evil one snatches it away like a seagull snatching your fries on the beach. Even before you had a chance to eat the first one, there go your fries. There goes your heart for Jesus. Your heart for revival. Create space to hear Him!

Maybe you are the rocky soil. You believe the Word. You love everything about it and take so much joy in what Christ did for you. But that’s it. There’s no root, no growth and you try to do all the things at once. Reading the whole Bible in a week, coming to church every time the door is open and signing up for 12 disciple groups a week. But you realize all of that is unattainable, and you crash and burn.

This path is narrow and rocky, and you came in hot, thinking all your problems would be solved in a week. Now, you sit at home and maybe wait for the next church service, maybe not. You become frustrated and feel defeated. You never root yourself in the Word.

Dig deep, spend time alone with God and read His Word! Work on your personal relationship with Him. Let that go deeper and you will see the satisfaction through Him alone, and not all the things to do. Those things are good, but they aren’t helping your personal relationship with Him.

Maybe you are listening, and absolutely LOVE everything about worship, church, and fellowship with other believers. But then you get home and by day three of the week, you are back to bad decisions, cares of the world and all the things in it because you left that relationship with Jesus at the altar on Sunday morning instead of taking it home with you. That’s the surface heart. Maybe keeping Him separated from the rest of your world is way more fun. God’s word falls on thorny soil, choked out by the things of this world. Dump your junk at the altar but don’t leave Jesus there too.

Maybe you are the good soil that the seed falls on. You rejoice in the Lord with everything you do, the Word penetrates your heart. He guides and leads you through the good and bad in your life. And because of that, others see the change and they ask, “what’s different?” and you share your story, you disciple. You bear fruit, then they bear fruit, and then they bear fruit…

I will be the first to say that I’ve been in every category, and I don’t fall in the “good soil” category as often as I’d like to admit. I am distracted, distant, fearful, reluctant, angry and on and on…

What is one thing you can do in these next few weeks leading up to Saturated, that will help prepare your heart for revival?

Commit to it, whether it is. Prayer, daily devotions, leaning into your one more. Ask God to speak to your heart. He may not answer right away, but I will tell you, He is listening.

God, you know my heart, what type of soil the seed falls on. You know and can see all the things that keep my heart from being prepared and ready for You. Help me to see those things and help me to remove the idols, fear or whatever it is I need to remove to move closer to You. Amen.