Three Reasons Your Not Being RIDICULOUSLY Fruitful and the One Secret to be Just That - Day 13: Thirty Day Meditations to Abundant Life!
Have you ever gone through the motions, the spiritual disciplines that is, of prayer and meditations, reading the word, 'fellowshiping' with believers, doing good stuff in the community, being generous and all that, and yet somehow, you feel empty, unfruitful, as if the world has turned tasteless?
This may not be new to many of you, but if it is a tenth refreshingly enlightening to you as it has been to me, I shall rejoice. I know now exactly why you may be experiencing the aforementioned symptoms! Yes, it's right in the Bible and it always has been and is probably one of the most well known passages of Scriptures. Grasping this truth WILL bring about fruit in unimaginable quantities to you.
The secret (which contains four separate aspects) is found in the parable of the sower, uttered by Jesus. I love how Jesus' words are so simple yet fascinatingly deep. Years after you have read them they shall still continue to reveal to you yet undiscovered, luminescent gems of beauty and glory. There is a reason why so many of us are wallowing in failure and fruitfulness... three in fact, and a fourth is necessary to reverse it. So are you ready for them?
1) You worry about things.
Jesus called them "the cares of this world". You might be fretting about finances or sickness, disobedient hair or being late to an appointment, an annoying situation at work or some broken plumbing business at home, or if you're in the Middle East these days, the imminent invasion of your nation by blood thirsty, devil-infested terrorists... it's all the same; your heart is troubled.
Imagine you bring these worries to Jesus. You lay them at His feet, "Ok, Lord, now what do I do?"
"Well son, just don't let your heart be troubled."
Argh! What an unsatisfying answer. You don't say anything but your disappointment is so evident, even the molecules of air you're breathing know it.
"Son, rely on Me. You deserve what I deserve [i.e. that's what He did on the cross, folks]. I've got this. Really I do. I'm going to care of it. Just trust Me."
Enough of worry, cast it out from your heart. Be brave and believe God for good to come to you. If He didn't spare - for your sake - His One and Only, eternally, infinitely and ever beloved Son, do you really think you should be worried about what you're worrying about!?
Good. You see, God's word has creative power. The first thing uttered by God in the Bible, is "Light, exist!" From nothing and a dark nothing, light came. God's word is powerful to create in you what is not and what you don't have right now. But being enamored with tiny cares or titanic anxieties alike will prevent God's word's creative powers from being unleashed... so let go of them. Now is the time to do so.
2) You are deceived by what you think money can buy.
If only I had more money, this much more, or that much. I would build and buy and do and be all sorts of things. Money will come and present itself to you as the answer to your woes and worries. Funny, but if I'm not mistaken, it will actually promise you exactly what God promises you! Money is not bad and it's not evil to be rich or anything like that, but it's the desire for more money so you can be happy that will keep God's word from bearing fruit and creating the yet-to-be-experienced blessings of heaven already granted you in Christ. Read that sentence carefully again please.
Before I go on, let me say, I think you should always seek to expand your horizons, financially and otherwise, but your motives, your heart that is, really is everything and makes the difference between life and death.
The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil as Paul said. Both poor and rich are susceptible to this enemy. So beware of it. Learn to be content. Understand that with Jesus, money is nothing. Remember what He did with Peter when they needed to pay a tax? He told Peter to go fishing and pick up the first fish and then opening it's mouth he would find what he needed for himself and Jesus. The money that was in that single fish's mouth was what he would have earned had he sold a whole boat load full of fish. Money is nothing to Jesus. It doesn't fit into the heavenly equation of provision granted to you in the glorious inheritance of Christ.
Think deeply here, have you been deceived lately by money? If you have, don't waste time feeling guilty, but instead change your mind about it and begin (once again) to rely even more on His grace to care for all your needs and desires as well. This eBook of mine might also interest you.
3) You want to experience or have many other things.
I had a recurring dream about one or two years ago. In the dream, it was summer, the sun was always shining and I was on vacation. It seemed that at every turn I met the Mediterranean's crystal clear waters ever glistening with the sun's rays, beckoning to me. Now, I love the beach and the sea. And in this dream, I would get so close to it but then have to leave without so much dipping a toe into the azure waters. Though it wasn't full of demons and monsters, these agonizing dreams haunted me for a time and I considered them almost a nightmare.
I knew it wasn't a premonition. I felt it had to do rather with something I was experiencing. If I'm not mistaken, the Bible calls this thing... coveting. I'm sure you've heard of it! I desired this and that, whether it was material or not but I only ended up feeling empty and frustrated. You might be looking for an experience, perhaps a memory or it maybe something more tangible, a house, a car or something your don't really need but desperately want. It could be anything, but these desires can be quite dangerous and totally stifle your spiritual life.
The Lord is a fountain of Life whose waters our hearts were made to drink and enjoy deeply from. But when we choose the muddy, dry wells of the world and our hearts gets mired down in desires, good or bad, lasting or temporal, noble or shameful, it doesn't matter... greed will be planted in your heart leaving you unsatisfied and thirsty to death. So the answer would be... learn to be satisfied in the Lord. Learn to desire Him, ask Him to enthrall you with His beauty and seek His presence, His glory and His love above all things.
4) With the right heart will be the ripe harvest
You know the end of the parable. The seed sown on the good soil yielded 30, 60 and 100 times what was sown! And then Jesus explained that the soil in the parable was your heart and the seed God's awesome and pure Word. Combining the attributes of this heart from Mat 13, Mark 4 and Luke 8 you'll get the secret to being RIDICULOUSLY fruitful...
The heart that is fruitful, Jesus said...
Always hears the word, accepts it and then understands it (see this post about meditating on the word). But there's something else. This heart is good and noble. In other words, the thoughts you'd find if you entered the holy temple (the soul or heart) of a person who had such a good and noble heart, are pure, holy and enlightening. They are joyful and thankful thoughts, wisdom rests there and above all there is always worship, worship is heard, the praise of the Most High in these hearts.
And the final attribute, such a heart is patient and perseveres! It doesn't just hear and accept God's word and then goes on to forget about it. It cultivates His word! If God's word is seed and your heart the good soil, you are the gardener who waters, nourishes and cares for the seed sown as it grows into a majestic tree bearing fruit for years to come.
So what do you do with the words of your Father spoken to you? Do you take the time to bring it back up and think on it, after days, weeks, months or even years have gone by? (How useful to keep a journal!) When you pray to your Father, are you reminding yourself of His promises and asking Him about them? He doesn't need to be reminded, but we do! Some of us still aren't even sure they really are meant for us... Do you know that the Scriptures say that you are blessed with every promise written in the Book... every single one, is now yours in Christ! It doesn't matter to whom and when they written... you say, 'How can that be?' It can be because of what Jesus did for you on the cross.
God is pleased to give you the Kingdom, to call you His Sons and Daughters and He's already blessed with every spiritual blessing, made you sit with Him in the heavenly places, forever forgiven you of all your sins and granted you a beautiful inheritance that is beyond imaginable. That's what His Word says... in fact, His Word is Jesus.
So trust your Father. Cast your worries, rely on His Grace nor your doings or circumstances. Money is not the answer nor the source of blessing, but the Father whose love for you is infinite is! Desire Jesus. Hear the Word, receive it, think on it and then be patient, persevere and see how fruitful you shall be!
Previous day's post: The greatest decision any one can take - Day 12: Thirty Day Meditations to Abundant Life!
David Roiel
Subscribe today to get these posts by email and look for my frequent eBook giveaways!
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| Courtesy of Iam_photography, modified by D.R. |
The secret (which contains four separate aspects) is found in the parable of the sower, uttered by Jesus. I love how Jesus' words are so simple yet fascinatingly deep. Years after you have read them they shall still continue to reveal to you yet undiscovered, luminescent gems of beauty and glory. There is a reason why so many of us are wallowing in failure and fruitfulness... three in fact, and a fourth is necessary to reverse it. So are you ready for them?
1) You worry about things.
Jesus called them "the cares of this world". You might be fretting about finances or sickness, disobedient hair or being late to an appointment, an annoying situation at work or some broken plumbing business at home, or if you're in the Middle East these days, the imminent invasion of your nation by blood thirsty, devil-infested terrorists... it's all the same; your heart is troubled.
Imagine you bring these worries to Jesus. You lay them at His feet, "Ok, Lord, now what do I do?"
"Well son, just don't let your heart be troubled."
Argh! What an unsatisfying answer. You don't say anything but your disappointment is so evident, even the molecules of air you're breathing know it.
"Son, rely on Me. You deserve what I deserve [i.e. that's what He did on the cross, folks]. I've got this. Really I do. I'm going to care of it. Just trust Me."
Enough of worry, cast it out from your heart. Be brave and believe God for good to come to you. If He didn't spare - for your sake - His One and Only, eternally, infinitely and ever beloved Son, do you really think you should be worried about what you're worrying about!?
Good. You see, God's word has creative power. The first thing uttered by God in the Bible, is "Light, exist!" From nothing and a dark nothing, light came. God's word is powerful to create in you what is not and what you don't have right now. But being enamored with tiny cares or titanic anxieties alike will prevent God's word's creative powers from being unleashed... so let go of them. Now is the time to do so.
2) You are deceived by what you think money can buy.
If only I had more money, this much more, or that much. I would build and buy and do and be all sorts of things. Money will come and present itself to you as the answer to your woes and worries. Funny, but if I'm not mistaken, it will actually promise you exactly what God promises you! Money is not bad and it's not evil to be rich or anything like that, but it's the desire for more money so you can be happy that will keep God's word from bearing fruit and creating the yet-to-be-experienced blessings of heaven already granted you in Christ. Read that sentence carefully again please.
Before I go on, let me say, I think you should always seek to expand your horizons, financially and otherwise, but your motives, your heart that is, really is everything and makes the difference between life and death.
The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil as Paul said. Both poor and rich are susceptible to this enemy. So beware of it. Learn to be content. Understand that with Jesus, money is nothing. Remember what He did with Peter when they needed to pay a tax? He told Peter to go fishing and pick up the first fish and then opening it's mouth he would find what he needed for himself and Jesus. The money that was in that single fish's mouth was what he would have earned had he sold a whole boat load full of fish. Money is nothing to Jesus. It doesn't fit into the heavenly equation of provision granted to you in the glorious inheritance of Christ.
Think deeply here, have you been deceived lately by money? If you have, don't waste time feeling guilty, but instead change your mind about it and begin (once again) to rely even more on His grace to care for all your needs and desires as well. This eBook of mine might also interest you.
3) You want to experience or have many other things.
I had a recurring dream about one or two years ago. In the dream, it was summer, the sun was always shining and I was on vacation. It seemed that at every turn I met the Mediterranean's crystal clear waters ever glistening with the sun's rays, beckoning to me. Now, I love the beach and the sea. And in this dream, I would get so close to it but then have to leave without so much dipping a toe into the azure waters. Though it wasn't full of demons and monsters, these agonizing dreams haunted me for a time and I considered them almost a nightmare.
I knew it wasn't a premonition. I felt it had to do rather with something I was experiencing. If I'm not mistaken, the Bible calls this thing... coveting. I'm sure you've heard of it! I desired this and that, whether it was material or not but I only ended up feeling empty and frustrated. You might be looking for an experience, perhaps a memory or it maybe something more tangible, a house, a car or something your don't really need but desperately want. It could be anything, but these desires can be quite dangerous and totally stifle your spiritual life.
The Lord is a fountain of Life whose waters our hearts were made to drink and enjoy deeply from. But when we choose the muddy, dry wells of the world and our hearts gets mired down in desires, good or bad, lasting or temporal, noble or shameful, it doesn't matter... greed will be planted in your heart leaving you unsatisfied and thirsty to death. So the answer would be... learn to be satisfied in the Lord. Learn to desire Him, ask Him to enthrall you with His beauty and seek His presence, His glory and His love above all things.
One thing I have desired of the Lord, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord, And to inquire in His temple. Psalm 27:4
4) With the right heart will be the ripe harvest
You know the end of the parable. The seed sown on the good soil yielded 30, 60 and 100 times what was sown! And then Jesus explained that the soil in the parable was your heart and the seed God's awesome and pure Word. Combining the attributes of this heart from Mat 13, Mark 4 and Luke 8 you'll get the secret to being RIDICULOUSLY fruitful...
The heart that is fruitful, Jesus said...
Always hears the word, accepts it and then understands it (see this post about meditating on the word). But there's something else. This heart is good and noble. In other words, the thoughts you'd find if you entered the holy temple (the soul or heart) of a person who had such a good and noble heart, are pure, holy and enlightening. They are joyful and thankful thoughts, wisdom rests there and above all there is always worship, worship is heard, the praise of the Most High in these hearts.
And the final attribute, such a heart is patient and perseveres! It doesn't just hear and accept God's word and then goes on to forget about it. It cultivates His word! If God's word is seed and your heart the good soil, you are the gardener who waters, nourishes and cares for the seed sown as it grows into a majestic tree bearing fruit for years to come.
So what do you do with the words of your Father spoken to you? Do you take the time to bring it back up and think on it, after days, weeks, months or even years have gone by? (How useful to keep a journal!) When you pray to your Father, are you reminding yourself of His promises and asking Him about them? He doesn't need to be reminded, but we do! Some of us still aren't even sure they really are meant for us... Do you know that the Scriptures say that you are blessed with every promise written in the Book... every single one, is now yours in Christ! It doesn't matter to whom and when they written... you say, 'How can that be?' It can be because of what Jesus did for you on the cross.
God is pleased to give you the Kingdom, to call you His Sons and Daughters and He's already blessed with every spiritual blessing, made you sit with Him in the heavenly places, forever forgiven you of all your sins and granted you a beautiful inheritance that is beyond imaginable. That's what His Word says... in fact, His Word is Jesus.
So trust your Father. Cast your worries, rely on His Grace nor your doings or circumstances. Money is not the answer nor the source of blessing, but the Father whose love for you is infinite is! Desire Jesus. Hear the Word, receive it, think on it and then be patient, persevere and see how fruitful you shall be!
Previous day's post: The greatest decision any one can take - Day 12: Thirty Day Meditations to Abundant Life!
David Roiel
The Green Leaf Blog-Discover your inheritance!
Subscribe today to get these posts by email and look for my frequent eBook giveaways!
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