Breaking Up the Unplowed Ground of My Heart

The Bible likens our hearts to soil. Now in the third year of my career, I’ve begun to feel as though the soil of my heart is dry and cracked. On the Sabbath, it is watered with God’s word of the living water, but during the workweek, it gradually dries out again. I often wondered why I couldn’t hold on to the water of life throughout the week. While examining my faith, I found the answer in a single verse:

Sow righteousness for yourselves, 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 his righteousness on you. Hos 10:12

To soften unplowed ground, it must be tilled regularly—pulling out weeds, enriching it with fertilizer, and working the soil with care. Only then can the rain of the Holy Spirit fall and keep the heart’s soil from growing dry and hard. But I had been neglecting that task. I made excuses, telling myself I was too busy, too tired from work. My prayers became less frequent, and the time I spent studying the Word gradually grew shorter.

Reflecting on my shortcomings, I offered a prayer of repentance. Wherever I am, whatever I’m doing, I will seek our Heavenly Father and Mother. I will break up the unplowed ground of my heart and cultivate it into rich, fertile soil once more.