WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 19
Scripture: Mark 4:16,17

Mark 4:16,17 says, “These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble.” Stony ground is ground where there are rocks underneath the soil and the seed cannot geminate because of the rocks. Therefore we have to till the soil, recognize the rocks and remove them. These rocks are specifically named. Tribulation and persecution have a purpose. The purpose of tribulation and persecution is to bring offense. Stumble means to be offended at the Word because it was costlier than we thought. Many promises have a price tag. Some promises have such a price tag that it is easy to get offended at the weighty cost and completely let go of the promise. That is where offense comes in and that is the whole process of stony ground. Stony ground goes one of two ways. Either we recognize the ground as stony and dig the stones out or we end up getting offended at the word and sacrificing the harvest. God’s intent is that we turn all stony ground into good ground by removing the stones. The question is, are we willing to pay the price to do that? Taking stones out of a field demands diligence and work. Take it from someone who has done it more than once. The thing I hated about the farm more than anything else was the process of removing the stones from the field. It is a long, sweaty process!