13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea.2 And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach.3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow.4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them.5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil,6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away.7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.9 He who has ears,[a] let him hear.” Matthew 13:1-9
A few days ago I was sitting on my bed and one by one the voices that I've been listening to were coming back to me...voices of people to whom I'd given access to my time, my ear and unbeknownst to me, my subconscious. And that very same week, my Pastor charged all of us with the task of making conscientious interruptions each time a thought would come to our minds that was contrary to the Word and promises of God. Once identified, the next part of our task was to immediately counter that thought with what God actually says about whatever the thought intended to affect.
I laughed one day, literally out loud, as I'd been singing a Michael Jackson song....interestingly, I only knew a portion of the lyrics..."You are not alone...I am here with you..." And I just smiled and hummed thinking that that portion of the song reminded me of God's promise to never leave nor forsake us. But THEN, I read the lyrics and the more I read, the less I sang! It really started to sound creepy as though he was talking to someone who'd died and that dead lover wanted him to be where she was...but she was dead!! Now of course this was my interpretation but certainly nowhere in the lyrics was God and/or Jesus mentioned so immediately, I turned the song off, I began to cancel the words that I'd spoken in harmony with the lyrics and catchy tune. Getting the tune out of my head took a bit more doing but eventually, I replaced it with something much more edifying.
Now you all may laugh and think, "Man...that's a little extreme...It was a Michael Jackson song!" But the truth of the matter is that life and death is in the power of the tongue. Words matter! Whether they be written in books, magazines, spoken or signed in conversations or sung as lyrics in a song. Words matter and can impact and frame your world, vision and future.
So how does all of that fit into the video above? Well, going back to the conversation that I began having with the Lord as to why it seemed like I wasn't making any progress with Myriad Unlimited. He'd (God) given me these phenomenal ideas, connected me with the right people but it just seemed as though I was sowing my time, my finances and efforts into the business and other people's businesses without even a hint of a harvest. I give my tithes faithfully and give of myself and my talents only to be worn out, exhausted and seemingly STILL not progressing. Then I heard my mentor Mr. Cartwright's voice saying..."Karla, you were running so well! WHO hindered you?" He used to remind us that if we found ourselves becoming increasingly more distracted, not as diligent; to look at our surroundings, but more importantly, write down the names of the 5 people that you talk to the most. He said, once you do that, identify if those conversations are helping or hindering your progress. He said that whoever you talk to the most is who you are inadvertently in agreement with whether good or bad. Well!! I did just that and found the "culprit". I've since made the necessary adjustments with a few more needed to fully get back on track. But that still did not explain (completely) why I wasn't and haven't seen even a "sprouting" of a harvest!
During a conversation with my brother yesterday, we both talked about how hard we've worked and though there is no jealousy ever toward others, we've still seen people that seemingly do nothing, reaping harvest after harvest--sometimes undeservedly. Whereas, we've planted, we've watered, we've tended and not yet even seen a weed! And then I remembered that spiritual truths parallel natural truths. It's impossible to scatter seed (though we have been intentional and deliberate about where we've planted) all over and see nothing anywhere. Even as the scripture shares above, if it was the wrong ground, SOMETHING would likely still grow but possibly not survive...so I went on a search through YouTube to watch the germination of a seed and there it was...my answer!
The roots grow FIRST deeply into the soil so that it can anchor the seed. The seed has actually begun to sprout in this stage and as as it grows deeper into the soil, it begins to make its own food from the nutrients it takes from the soil. The roots deliver water from the soil to the plants. Plants and their roots are so intricately connected that no plant can survive without its root system for support and nutrition.
So just like the natural seed, it's important to plant/sow into good ground. Our hearts are the soil. The seeds are God's promises and His Word. We've got to protect the environment as our seed begins to germinate (take root in our hearts). What we hear, what we take in through our eyes (our eyes must be singly focused--this is where the light comes from), what we consume, who we allow to feed us watching for those who are feeding ON (parasites) us and taking the nutrients (via distractions) needed to support our seed. The Word of God speaks often about diligence being one of the most important keys to a successful business.
Diligence--carefulness, persistent effort and work. We must be diligent about countering every thought and every word we speak to and about our businesses that is not aligned with the vision. Remember...our words are nutrients, our thoughts water, our faith fertilizer but ultimately God gives the increase! If you have been diligent in every area and still don't see anything yet...don't get discouraged or frustrated...remember the roots grow first!!