Generous, Day 9 - Do Less for More

Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.  Mark 4:18-19

Few things really matter in life. Jesus taught us that.  When Martha engaged Jesus in a sibling rivalry asking him to command her sister to join her in preparations for a party, Jesus’ response was “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:41-42).  Martha was upset and worried about many things, but only one thing is needed…one thing matters.

In the parable of the soils (Mark 4:1-20), Jesus talks about four kinds of soil representing four conditions of the heart.  The first was fallow ground like the path that represented those whose hearts were hard and unprepared to receive God’s word.  A second soil was rocky ground, where the earth was shallow and so potential to dig deep roots in faith is compromised.  A third type, the good soil, had what seemed to be exponential potential under the care of the Wise Farmer (Is. 55:10-11).  I find the fourth kind of soil very interesting.  As we dissect the story we realize that this soil has the same potential as the good soil.  The only difference between the two soils is that something else already exists in this soil that rivals the seed – thorns.  As the seed was sown, the soil’s previous tenant grows side by side with this new plant until it eventually overtakes it, literally choking it out until it is dead, killing of any potential harvest.

In this parable, the seed is the Word of God (Mark 4:14).  The thorns don’t affect the hearing of the word, only the application of it.  Jesus identifies the thorns that ruin the work of God’s word in our lives as well – “the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things”.  These issues have a tendency to choke out God’s word in our lives.   They choke our time in God’s Word, our receptivity to God’s Word and, as a result the effectiveness of God’s Word.  In order to become fruitful, the believer must rid him/herself of these thorns so that God’s Word can take full effect on our lives.

The simple life begins with repentance.  The Bible teaches that there is a direct link between wealth and stuff and our walk with God.  (Luke 3:7-14, Luke 19:1-10)  We cannot follow God and pursue worldly pleasures (1 John 2:15-17).  There is only room for one at the top.  We must make room for what God’s Word says about the connection between faith and finances. We must repent – acknowledge that we have allowed other things to crowd out God’s desire for us in this area, ask for God’s forgiveness and renew our commitment to live according to His word.

Generosity Challenge (Day 8) – Go into your closet and collect the nice clothes you don’t wear anymore and give them to PRISM, Goodwill or some other organization that helps people with clothing.  If you would rather, give the kids’ clothes as hand-me-downs to a neighbor or friend.