Preparing the Soil

Every farmer knows that the most important factor in a successful growing season is the soil. If the soil is not ready for the seed, the harvest will be meager at best. This was the point Jesus emphasized in the parable of the sower: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside . . . some fell on stony ground . . . some seed fell among thorns. . . . But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred” (Mark 4:3-8). The only harvest came from seeds that were planted in “good ground.”

As we learned in the last chapter, the seed represents the Word of God, while the ground represents the soil of the human heart (see Mark 4:14-20). Before the heart will be ready to receive the seed of truth, it must be softened. In an age when people tend to be skeptical about religion, they must be approached in a way that inspires confidence in the one sharing the truth before they will be open to receiving it. This is best accomplished by drawing close to people in personal ministry.