Losing weight, eating healthier, exercising, saving money, getting out of debt. New Year’s resolutions will push us outside of our comfort zone! In fact, growth, change and improvement likely won’t happen without some discomfort.
How many of us will give up on our goals just when the new territory begins to stretch us and make us uncomfortable? But satisfaction and comfort may be the very things that keep us from flourishing.
Through the prophet Hosea, the Lord spoke these words, “When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me.” (Hosea 13:6)
We naturally seek pleasure, happiness, comfort and satisfaction, don’t we?
But the Bible tells us to stir up discomfort and sow seeds of righteousness. We can’t do those things while pursuing whatever it takes to feel satisfied and comfortable.
Hosea 10:12 says, “Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers righteousness on you.”
God desires that we break up the unplowed soil of our hearts to prepare for new seeds which will result in a different and better harvest.
When I think of an acre of unplowed soil, I imagine that it may look rather peaceful, albeit somewhat useless. It could possibly be productive but the land hasn’t been prepared to produce anything. Seeds can’t be sown because the ground hasn’t been tilled yet. And if seeds aren’t planted, there won’t be a harvest.
It seems that the phrase, “break up your unplowed ground” is God’s admonishment for complacency and satisfaction. Too much comfort and people tend to forget the Lord. A blessed life should cause us to worship God and desire to serve Him. It shouldn’t be an excuse to live a self-absorbed, materialistic life that forgets the Provider of the blessings.
When Hosea wrote these words, it was a time when the hearts of God’s people had become unreceptive to God. The soil of their hearts had been infested by the weeds of the world and the seeds of righteousness could not flourish.
Verse 12 tells us to prepare the soil of our hearts and to seek the Lord. We are to “break up the unplowed ground” of our hearts so that we can be productive and yield a life of righteousness.
The best way to prepare our hearts is to:
Get rid of the weeds – Self-examination and repentance are the ways to get rid of the weeds that are choking the potential harvest. When we turn from our sin we are eliminating the weeds and tilling the soil of our hearts.
Prepare the soil for new seeds – Studying God’s Word will make us uncomfortable. It’s like holding up a mirror that exposes our flaws. The conviction and repentance of our sin prepares our hearts, like fresh soil, to receive the seeds of truth of God’s Word that will grow into righteous living. As we read and study the Bible, seeds of truth are being planted into the fresh, receptive soil of our hearts.
Be ready for a harvest – The end of verse 12 says that the Lord “showers righteousness” on us. It’s not my righteousness, my good works or my clean and better life. God sanctifies us, making us more like Christ. It’s His righteousness that will flourish within us. Spending time in prayer and study of God’s Word increases our desire to be productive in accomplishing God’s plan for our lives. And we will reap a harvest of God’s righteousness as we walk with Him.
We all have a tendency to become complacent, especially when we are satisfied and comfortable. My desire is to serve the Lord and be as productive as possible. I don’t want to be limited by my own complacency!
In order to break up my unplowed ground of my heart, I must ask myself this question:
Am I willing to push beyond the discomfort of today so that God can produce a better harvest in my life for His glory?
Laurie Driesen 