By Martha Bush

Thank you for joining me for another post on The Kingdom of God. Today, we are taking another look at The Mustard Seed we discussed last week in Matthew 13, and the role it plays in our partnership with Jesus. 

Last week, we discovered the type of soil (our heart) The Mustard Seed is planted on will determine whether or not we bring about The Rule of God against the wiles of the enemy. Types of soil include: Hard, Shallow, Worldly, Understanding.

I shared the diagnosis of my heart during a season of major transition in my life - - Shallow and Worldly. Thankfully, the Lord pulled me through that longggggg season, and I grew in grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. The old devil was defeated in several areas of my life where he was trying to take over.

Strange thing! I couldn’t get my mind off The Mustard Seed this week. I began to wonder if I needed another heart checkup. So, I asked the Lord, “What kind of heart do you see me having TODAY, 2021?”  Obviously, I expected an excellent diagnosis, as in “Heart of a SAINT.”   

But, that was not the case. The Lord gently chided me with, “You are not living up to the potential I have placed in you. Yes, you have produced fruit, but remember - good soil is expected to yield more than 30% and 60%.  You have stopped half-way.”

And then He gave me two reasons why I was not living up to my potential.

1. Discouraged Heart
2. Slothful Heart (aka lazy)

I knew immediately what He was referring to, and I cried, “Oh, Lord; forgive me for thinking I had reached the Heart of a Saint.”

Discouraged Heart: Not to pass the buck, but I believe many of us go through times of discouragement when God’s promises and prophetic words have not manifested themselves on our timetable. Let’s take a look at some “long-haulers” in the Bible to encourage us.

Caleb and Joshua: They were the poster boys for longevity - forty years in The Wilderness.  Why so long? After after, they confirmed there were no giants in the land. Unfortunately, they had to wander around with unbelievers, but it didn’t cause them to become discouraged and quit.

We, too, walk among unbelievers who might be the reason our promises are delayed. I recall a Bible teacher saying: “God works behind the scenes. When He gets everyone like He wants them, His promises become a reality. In the meantime, grab the hand of a friend, live up to the potential God has placed within you; He chose you to give birth to His promises.”

Abraham and Sarah: Talking about a long time of waiting for a baby – twenty-five years is the pits. Though Abraham wasn’t perfect, there was a time he dealt the enemy a low blow in regards to the sealed blood covenant.

As the blood covenant lay on the ground, the fowls came down upon the carcases, and Abram drove them away. (Genesis 15:11)

Moral of the story: Don’t let the fowl of discouragement eat up the promises God has made. In the name of Jesus, drive it away; become all God says we are in Him; live up to the potential He has placed within us. Be in it for the long-haul.

Slothful Heart: How many times are we so secure where we are, but there’s still something burning inside of us we know we haven’t fulfilled. We listen to that burning and hear it inside, but we don’t do anything about it.

Nehemiah comes to my mind when I think of overcoming what could have been a slothful, lazy heart. Nehemiah held an influential position to the King of Persia. But, his heart told him, “You love Jerusalem, do something about God’s city that is in shambles!"  He then went through thick and thin to bring about the restoration of Jerusalem and the revival God wanted to take place there.

I don’t know about you, but God talks to me according to my personality. I know I heard Him say, “Martha, you need to get up off your can and stop being lazy; there’s a work that you haven’t finished. You need to produce what I have put in you to produce.”

Conclude

My friends, I tend to believe that we often take for granted past doctrines of faith we have learned during a season of life, and then, over time, they fall off our spiritual radar.  Meanwhile, we go on to the next “learning experience” without bringing past concepts with us and continually applying them.

The Parables of The Seed and The Sower could possibly be one of the old familiar doctrines that seem so simple that they could fall by the wayside, yet play a huge role of our response to The Kingdom of God.

I stand guilty of not periodically judging my soil (heart). What about you?