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Rootsby Allen Brown
My family and I moved to Maricopa, AZ, from the East Coast a little over a year ago. The area where we lived abounded in rolling hills and green grass! In an effort to add a little green to our current Arizona backyard, we set out to purchase several plants. As I took a shovel to the ground, I quickly learned that our yard was hard and brittle. Determined to break through the layers of sand, rocks and hard soil, I finally dug a hole that was deep enough and wide enough to set the plants into. For a few months we enjoyed our lush desert plants, watering them often and delighting in their growth. However, over the last month or so I noticed that our plants began to lose their color. They were turning brown on the tips of their leaves and the discoloration was working its way downward toward the core of each plant. One day while I was watering the plants, the Lord prompted me to look at the base of one plant in particular. To my surprise, I noticed that the soil around the plant had washed away and significant portions of the roots were now exposed to the hot Arizona sun. I covered the roots with some more soil and mulch … brilliant! Problem solved … or so I thought. Approximately one week later, I noticed that the plant had not improved and that the soil had washed away again, exposing the roots. As I reflected on the roots, I thought of the parable of the sower and the seeds that fell on gravel, much like my backyard. Mark 4:3 in The Message says, “Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn't put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly.” I started off to cover up the roots. But this time the Lord quickened to me a simple truth: the successful growth of my plants, just like the growth of the seeds sown, was not dependent on the exposed roots but on the type of soil I had planted each of my plants in. Even though I broke up the hard, stony ground, I had not continued to properly prepare and cultivate the soil. I should have treated the new broken ground with rich soil and water for a couple of days before I placed the plants in the ground. The opening should have been deep enough to make sure all of the roots were deeply embedded in the prepared ground. Through the effort of trying to improve the looks of my backyard, the Lord has shown me that the Word of God sown in my heart was important, but not as important as the condition of my heart. In fact, I felt a challenge to inspect the condition of my heart just as I had inspected the plants. Was I trying to “band-aid” exposed roots or was I allowing God to do a deeper work in my heart? Mark 4:3-9 (The Message) “Listen. What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn’t put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled among the weeds and nothing came of it. Some fell on good earth and came up with a flourish, producing a harvest exceeding his wildest dreams. Are you listening to this? Really listening?” What about you? Are you ready for a harvest that exceeds your wildest dreams? In this season, where so many things in the natural are uncertain, and the cares of this world have the capability of choking God’s Word in our lives, purpose to protect and cultivate your heart in the things of God. As for my plants… Prayer Directives for the Body of Christ:
Prayer Directives for CSA-XP Minstries
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