What kind of soil am I?

This is not the same thing as asking, “What kind of soil was I?” The kind of soil I was when I met Jesus is different from what it is today. What kind of soil am I today?

When Jesus told this parable in its original setting with its original audience, the message was somewhat veiled. No one fully comprehended what he said unless they wanted to. This seems to be the meaning of verse 8 when Jesus says, “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.”

His disciples wanted more, and so they asked, “What does this parable mean?”

Jesus then talked about different kinds of soil. There was the heavily-trod pathway, there was rocky soil, there was soil full of thorns, and there was good soil. Jesus said three out of four soils do not permit fruitful and productive growth.

There have been times in my life when I heard God’s word and it bounced right off of me. There have been times when I was interested in what God’s word said, but then I got more interested in something else. There have been times when I heard God’s word, but I was also listening to other voices and paid more attention to them.

Then there have been those seasons of life when I heard God’s word and it had its full effect in my life because I was ready for whatever God wanted to say to me.

Today, what about today? What kind of soil am I today? Do I really want to hear God’s words of truth and life? Do I want to align and attune my life with those words? Do I have ears to hear? Do I have a willing and obedient heart? Can God trust me, like Abraham, to walk before him, and be blameless? (See Genesis 17:1.)

I have followed Jesus for a long time now. I have walked with Jesus through many adventures. Dare I trust God’s word to have its full effect on my life and so walk before him in faith? Dare I take off the training wheels?

The day is early and it is time for us to decide what kind of soil we will be today. May these words describe us: