Reader,

Sometimes when I ask people how they are doing, they respond by saying, “I’m crushing it.”

They are not wrong. Driven forward by The Smothering Grind, they are crushing the life out of their lives.

I've written about how The Grind pushes us into burnout, flame out, and tapping out. Now it's time to talk about how to silence his villainous lies so we can become who we truly are and live the lives God created us for.

If you (like me) grew up in the church, you probably remember being taught the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:1-23). In this story, Jesus describes a former who's sowing seed in a field with four types of soil. The seed represented the message of the Kingdom of God, while the different soils represented the heart conditions of those who heard the message.

According to my first teachers, the four soils were pictures of different heart conditions within non-Christians – conditions that either prevented them from coming to faith or helped them to be receptive to it. However, I no longer believe that's the best way to understand this parable.

Brad Young, a tenured Professor of Judaic-Christian Studies, suggest that “[i]n a context of Jewish learning … [these] four different soil conditions would be viewed as various types of disciples absorbing the words taught by their master” (p. 251, emphasis mine).

Let that sink in for a minute. Those heart conditions aren't just true for unbelievers hearing the Gospel for the first time. Any one of them can be true of us at any given phase along our faith journey.

Do you know what that means? Part of the ongoing work of following Jesus involves consistently paying attention to and tilling the soil of our own hearts. If we want to experience an abundant life with Christ – the kind C. S. Lewis described as "further up and further in" – we must constantly evaluate what exactly we're dreaming about and putting our faith in.

This is a sobering thought. And yet, it should also give you hope. The state of your heart is not set in stone. Just like soil, you can till and cultivate your heart so it becomes a place that's receptive to the good news Jesus has to offer.

In the next two weeks, we'll dive further into this parable. We'll consider how these soil types show up in our lives and what we can do to heal them.

For now, I invite you to read that parable and take it to God in prayer. Ask him to show you where you're receptive and where you're not. Think back to times where your heart was open and rich, delighting in the good news of the Gospel. What was true for you then? What made you so receptive?

You are loved.

I am for you.

You've got this.

Jake

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PS – In a few short weeks, we'll be launching our next Living with Heart and Discover Your Soul cohorts. Perhaps you want to cultivate the soil within, but you're not sure if you can do that on your own. That's how Alie felt:

If you want to know if that's possible for you, book a discovery call today. I'd love to hear your story and help you create a plan that helps you become who you truly are.

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