Good Soil: Faith That Bears Lasting Fruit
Daily Scripture
Luke 8:11-15
11 “The parable means this: The seed is God’s word. 12 The seed on the path are those who hear, but then the devil comes and steals the word from their hearts so that they won’t believe and be saved. 13 The seed on the rock are those who receive the word joyfully when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while but fall away when they are tempted. 14 As for the seed that fell among thorny plants, these are the ones who, as they go about their lives, are choked by the concerns, riches, and pleasures of life, and their fruit never matures. 15 The seed that fell on good soil are those who hear the word and commit themselves to it with a good and upright heart. Through their resolve, they bear fruit.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
Cristiano Ronaldo: “Talent without working hard is nothing.”
Scholar Eugene Peterson described American culture: “Our attention spans have been conditioned by thirty-second commercials…. It is not difficult in such a world to get a person interested in the message of the gospel; it is terrifically difficult to sustain the interest. Millions of people in our culture make decisions for Christ, but there is a dreadful attrition rate.” * Jesus’ parable showed he would have agreed with Ronaldo—talent without hard work is nothing.
- Jesus ended the parable describing those whose seed grew: they “hear the word and commit themselves to it with a good and upright heart.” One scholar noted that the word “commit” showed “true faith is both spoken and practiced.” ** How do your ongoing choices and actions show your commitment to Jesus’ message? What’s the difference between believing the gospel and committing your life to it?
- Jesus said the seed that grew produced a harvest “one hundred times” what was planted—echoing Isaac’s blessing in Genesis 26:12. As one scholar noted, “Even if most seeds don’t produce, the harvest is still worth the effort of planting.” *** Jesus focused more on the beautiful results of what grew than on what didn’t. How can Jesus’ focus on the harvest, not the losses, encourage you to keep planting good seed in your own life and in the lives of others?
Prayer
God, prepare the soil of my heart to receive your word deeply. Grow a bountiful crop of your love, purity, goodness, and compassion within me. Let me be full to bursting with the fruit of your Spirit. Amen.
GPS Insights
MIchelle Kirby
Michelle Kirby, who serves Resurrection as Creative Content Development Lead Director, wrote today's Insights. She manages a staff team and provides leadership and oversight for creative projects. She also shares leadership of the church’s Internship Program. Michelle is married to Jeff, has two great kids, Kristen (Carl) and Andy (Sam) and a granddaughter, Skylar. Michelle enjoys traveling, reading and teaching, especially Bible Studies.
A few months ago, my mother passed away. She was 87 and for her last several years she had advanced dementia. At that point it was necessary for her to move away from her town and go live with my sister. It was challenging to say the least, but most challenging for our mom. She would recognize that she couldn’t remember and retain things like she had in the past—though she certainly did try. She would repeat herself often and it was interesting which topic would be on repeat. The main thing she would tell me was that she wanted to find a church and get back into a Bible study.
Why would someone—in her late 80s—think that she needed to be in a Bible study? Because she had good soil. It wasn’t just good fortune; she knew what it took to cultivate good soil. Intentionality and hard work.
Being in a Bible study at that point in her life wasn’t feasible, so each week, in person or over the phone, whatever I was teaching in Disciple Bible study or learning from a book I was reading, I would give her a short synopsis of the lesson. I would ask her questions, and she would contribute great responses and generate her own questions for us to discuss.
We would 
end by praying together and it became a really special time for us.
After she passed away, I brought her Bible home with me and just smiled at how well it had been used. Here’s a photo of one of the pages:
I began thinking about how she had cultivated good soil in her life—so here are some of the things I gleaned from her:
· Good seeds fell on her good soil. She fed on Scripture, books, sermons and conversations.
· She tried to keep the weeds at bay by keeping harmful things out of her life.
· She practiced having a soft heart. She said she was sorry, she had empathy and she spoke up about things she cared about.
· She was rooted in her church. That’s why she missed it so much. Her community, her studies, her volunteering, so much of it was there.
· She persevered. She did not have an easy life, but she pushed through—knowing that she didn’t do it alone. She had her family, her community but mostly God walking through it with her.
She would have loved that I used her as an example with this Scripture because she really loved gardening and watching things grow. She told me that she felt so connected to God when she gardened. I truly cannot tell you how many times she would say to be a successful gardener, it always comes back to good soil.
In our passage today, we see that we have a part to play in cultivating the soil where Jesus’ good seed is planted. I was fortunate to have someone show me what that looks like. My mom lived it every day. Thanks, Mom.
© 2026 Resurrection: A United Methodist Church. All Rights Reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References
* Peterson, Eugene H, A Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society (The IVP Signature Collection) (p. 10). InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition.
** Richard B. Vinson, study note on Luke 8:15 in The CEB Study Bible. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2013, p. 125 NT.
*** Richard B. Vinson, study note on Luke 8:8 in The CEB Study Bible. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2013, p. 125 NT.
