Matthew 13-15: Taking Inventory

“Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. 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.” - Matt. 13:18-23 NIV

It's impossible for me to read the Parable of the Sower without using it as a measuring stick for my own life and in doing so, I often come up short.  I understood the message of the kingdom and that message cannot be snatched away.  The message took root and has stood with me throughout my life.  The blessing however, the blessing that comes to those who understand and receive the message of the kingdom of God, that blessing has overwhelmed me.  When I contrast my life with that before I was truly committed to the Lord, I cannot measure the richness with which God has blessed me, but I have to confess at the same time, that I, like the parable, often let the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth, choke me.  It chokes that seed that was planted with such promise.  Prosperity, the prosperity that came only from God, causes me to sometimes think I have done it all on my own.  It causes me to sometimes think that I have to protect that prosperity rather than protecting my heart.  It causes me to be wrapped up in worries of preservation of the status quo rather than pushing through that status quo to where the real treasure lies.  Most of all, it keeps me from producing that crop that could be if only.  That means that right now, there may be someone who will never accept the gospel, who will never become one in the kingdom of God, because I have become consumed by my own life and not the kingdom.

2010 Post - Matthew 13-15:  Parables and Miracles