I discovered something about Jesus’ parable of the 4 soils and the 1 seed in Mark 4 on my walk-talk with Jesus today. I live around farmland that has all four soils. The hard soil is called a path around the farm made by vehicles driving and people walking over it. When the rains come, the drops of water hit the hard soil it just as much as it does the good soil. Yet, the rain only makes the hard soil harder while enriching the good soil. It’s the same rain, same seed, but entirely different results.
Seeds and soil need rain to produce crops, everyone knows this. Yet Jesus is talking about the human condition – the heart – as it relates to Him. You determine what the soil of your heart will be when the rains come.
You determine whether fruit will come out in your life, not Jesus, by choosing to become good soil. Will you let those who have walked over you in the past determine your joy today? Will you drive your roots deep into Jesus so when persecution comes your joy remains? Will you focus on the cares of the world or pull those choking weeds out in the Spirit’s power to focus on Jesus?
It’s your choice. Same rain. Same seed. The results are yours to decide. Decide today to surrender to the Spirit and let Him do His job of making you more like Jesus, the seed that bears much tasty fruit.
Set Free Now“W”w

Always stand strong in the Lord and never submit to things that are not worth your attention. Satan, through his many sources, deceives, debases and then destroys. Jesus’ words, on the other hand, encourage, enlighten and set us free.
You become who you listen to; thus who are you giving power in your life?
S“E”t Free Nowww

A friend of mine wears a necklace with a small bottle of sand. It was the sand from his baptism that ended up in his swim trunks. Every time he sees or feels that bottle he’s reminded of his commitment to walk with Jesus each and every day. For him, it’s a great reminder.
The Bible is full of such reminders – rocks, tassels, scriptural door holders – for the people of Israel to remember what God had done for them in past to give them the faith to walk with Him in the present. These reminders come in handy when life gets tough.
What physical reminders do you have to stay close to your God?
S“E”t Free Nowww

Shame. Embarrassment. Guilt. Feeling stupid. Kicking yourself. All of these can be extreme time wasters. They keep you away from being with Jesus and doing the “stuff” He created you to do, which makes you feel just the opposite.
Once you feel any of these, ask, “Spirit, is there any sin I need to confess?” If so, don’t waste time. Get forgiveness now! When asked, Jesus will forgive you, end of story. (1 John 1:9) He will not hesitate. Therefore, why waste time on these emotions, which only keep you down? Get forgiveness and your mind again focused on Jesus to experience His grace, mercy, peace and love.
We were given the right to do this the moment we became secure children of God through faith in Jesus’ death on the cross. Sure we don’t deserve it, but that’s why it’s called grace! Stop wasting time feeling like garbage and start feeling His peace and love again, which is what you really want, right?
“S”et Free Nowww

You’re going to laugh at this one. Our 3 year-old car battery warranty was surpassed by two years when it finally died today. I knew I was going to exchange it at the store, but I got distracted and forgot to bring the few simple tools I’d need to make the exchange.
Well, we get to the store without the tools to discover that it was going to be a hour-and-a-half wait for a 5 minute job. What did I do? Wait was not in my vocabulary! So we could be on our way sooner, I purchased the battery and an inexpensive set of tools to do the job that didn’t work for this particular job! Here’s the funny part,though. By the time we purchased the wrong tools and the right battery, the service bay became available to do it for us! Ugh!
I hate life lessons, don’t you? Distractions keep us from getting the right tools for each decision we have to make throughout our day. Impatience then makes us use the wrong tools to make those decisions.
Quoting just any Scriptural verse will not solve your challenges. You need the right biblical truth/tool for each job/decision. As you spend time with and in the Word, you’ll get the biblical tools you need, the wisdom to know which ones to use, and the power to implement them. As you do, you’ll experience the freedom Jesus came to bring, which in this case was spending more money for tools I didn’t need!
S“E”t Free Nowww