EXPAND TO READ: MATTHEW 13 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verses 20-21): When I first came to faith a little over 10 years ago, I was definitely the man sown on rocky ground. I accepted You as my Lord and Savior, but I was quickly and easily lost when placed under pressure, persecution, or simply gave into the world’s way of doing things. I was, essentially, stuck in a rut with no perceived way out because I was not looking for You through the storms and seeking Your strength, Your guidance, and Your wisdom to help me get through it all properly. Instead, I often gave into my flesh and the world; I dug back into my old, broken habits. Please forgive me for this, Father. Forgive me for my immaturity, my disobedience, and the fact that I came to faith on rocky ground. I made several mistakes that I am ashamed of as a result and am very sorry for all that I did against Your will for my life. I feel that since joining the Real Men 300 that I am now firmly planted on “good ground” in my faith as I have Godly men supporting me every day, I am in Your word every day, and I am seeking Your wisdom and counsel through just about everything I encounter in this life. Help me to continue to be more like the one sown on good ground from this point forward, Father.
PROMISE (verse 14): I really love this prophecy/promise and how Jesus is bringing it to fulfillment through the parables. The prophecy is that many will try to listen and look but will never understand nor be able to perceive what is being said/done about God’s kingdom. We often have our flesh and world-driven blinders and earmuffs on, which can distort or even hinder altogether the message we’re receiving from You. I know I’ve been guilty of this quite often throughout my faith. Thank You for the promise being fulfilled, however, because as I began to truly sow my faith seed in “good ground” I began to hear and see more from You than I ever experienced before in my faith. Thank You so much for breathing life into my lungs, for clearing the self-inflicted mud off my eyes and ears, and for just always being there for me, Father!
ATTITUDE (verses 14-17): My heart grew callous for most of my life. I even struggle to this day with many wounds on the heart that I have never allowed You to truly heal all the way through. Yes, I know, this is something I need to work on through our relationship and I am, albeit little-by-little. In these verses, however, You tell us that those who are truly blessed can see and hear You fully. As I’ve progressed in my faith recently, I do see, hear, and feel a big difference in how my faith journey was for the first 9 years since coming to faith compared to the last year. It’s amazing the things You have revealed to me over the last year since I started to become planted in good soil in my faith. Thank You, Father, for being patient with me since coming to faith and for allowing me to make the many mistakes I made along the way. Help me to continue to embrace an attitude of healing, endurance, and obedience to You, Father, so that I will continue to see and hear all that You have to say and do for me.
COMMAND (verses 16-17, 43b): This command is a rather simple command, but it’s one that I struggled with for many years since coming to faith, Father. You simply tell us that “anyone who has ears should listen!” I’ve had ears my entire life and am now 40 years old, but I feel like I’ve only truly listened maybe a year or two of that time. Now that I am able and willing to listen to You, it’s absolutely amazing the things You are revealing to me as I read through Your word again. The same verses I’ve read many times over in my life are showing me completely different things nowadays! Thank You, Father, for this growing relationship with You. Thank You for never giving up on me even when, at times, I gave up on myself.
EXAMPLE (verses 37-43): The explanation Jesus gives to His disciples here of the parable of wheat and weeds is absolutely eye-opening! Although I did somewhat understand bits and pieces of this parable while reading it through today, the explanation and examples He gives definitely opened my eyes even more to how much wisdom He was sharing with all of these people and they didn’t even realize how deep the parables went! There is so much to learn from even the parables now that I am able to listen properly to Your wisdom. Help me to continue to open my eyes and ears, Father, so that my flesh and world driven blinders never become a default of mine ever again. Help me to live in the spiritual eyes and ears You’ve blessed me with, so I can truly embrace all the wisdom You have to offer me in this short life.
*DAILY NOTE: Wow! Jesus definitely went all-in with all of these parables and revealing so much to everyone in the crowds and they didn’t even realize how much He was trying to bless them! They weren’t clean enough to truly reap the benefits of His amazing words in the moment, but thankfully You put disciples like Matthew around Him who were able to give us Your words, the context, and such a clearly written example of the greatness of Jesus during His walk on this earth. Continue to help me open my eyes and ears, Father, so that as I am ready more will be revealed to me from You. Continue to prepare me for the storms and stressors of this life, so that I never default back to my old ways again. Thank You for all of the works You’ve done in my heart so far and for helping me to plant my faith seeds in good ground instead of the rocky ground like I was at first. Thank You for being patient and gracious to me throughout all my disobedience and struggles in life and in my faith.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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