Daily Devotion 09/26/2018

Matthew 13:22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.

This verse in Jesus’ explanation of his parable always stands out to me the most. That’s because it is this soil that my heart relates to the most. I wonder if that’s the same for you, too? The gospel seed has been scattered across our hearts, and yet weeds are still growing in our hearts. These weeds choke our faith, but they don’t get rid of it. The weeds just make our faith less productive. See, weeds grow in our hearts because we know the gospel, we believe the gospel, but we don’t apply the gospel. We know that God says we are his children, that’s who we are. Yet every day we go to work trying to prove we are somebody. We know that God says we are fearfully and wonderfully made, and yet we stand in front of the mirror disappointed with what we see. We know that God says that he is our Father who takes care of all our needs, and yet we worry every day. Weeds like these grow in our heart when we hear and know God’s Word, but don’t apply it to ourselves. So what do we do? Use and apply the Word as a weed-killer! And when those “weeds” are destroyed, we will produce the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, and self-control.

Thank you, Lord, for making me promises in your Word. Help me to know those promises, trust those promises, and apply those promises to my life. Remove the weeds from my heart that I may grow deeper in you. Amen.