As a part of our conversation this summer called You Are What You Love we have looked at the different “soils” that represent the various states of the heart in Luke 8:4-15. Below you can determine what state your heart may be in and the love practices that can help your heart become fertile for what God wants to plant in your life! Also, you can join our Facebook “Community of Practice” for encouragement in this area of life. Click HERE

SOIL # 1 – HARD-HEART

Identifying Emotions: apathy, cynicism, anger, defensiveness

Spiritual Response: Repentance

Practices:

• Prayer of Protection – Daily pray that God would guard your heart from the enemy.
• Repentance Breath Prayers – One sentence prayer when you sense a hard hearts moment in word, thought or action (ie. “God forgive me for my apathy”).
• Time of Confession – With a conversation partner or journal, confess to God all that is contributing to heart heartedness.

SOIL # 2 – TESTED-HEART

Identifying Emotions: sad, overwhelmed, defeated, protective

Spiritual Response: Trust

Practices:

• Serenity Prayer – Prayer prayed for nearly 100 years by those wanting to trust God.
• Shared experience conversation partner – Find someone  to talk to regularly who knows what your are going through. Don’t believe the lie that “you’re the only one”.
• God-action storytelling – Journal or talk about the hardship in your life and talk about what you’ve seen God do along the way.

SOIL # 3 – CROWDED-HEART

Identifying Emotions: fear, worry, anxiety, unquenchable desire, distracted

Spiritual Response: Surrender

Practices:

• Daily Mindfulness – a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations.
• Surrender prayers – pray while physically/symbolically releasing areas of life to God.
• Daily Examen – Prayer that has been prayed for over 400 years ago helping you self reflect.
• Accountability Partner – Find someone who can ask you about the distractions in your life

SOIL # 4 – FERTILE-HEART

Identifying Emotions: fruits of the spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control

Spiritual Response: Steadfast Loving-Kindness

Practices:

• Listening and empathy for “the other” – ask questions and resist taking the focus back to yourself.
• Gratitude response – on your own or with others, regularly point out what we have to be grateful for.
• Courage to risk – when you have a choice to make, be willing to risk when it will lead to goodness.
• Being a support to others – being intentional and looking for those who you can come along side.

JOIN THE COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE ON FACEBOOK FOR ENCOURAGEMENT IN THIS PROCESS