Luke 8:13 "Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have not root. They beleive for a while but in the time of testing they fall away."

Matthew 13:5-6 "Some fell on rocky places where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root."

 This rocky soil heard the word, just like the path in verse 12, but it also understood and received it. Yet why did these plants fall away so fast?

They lacked a root. The plant was imbalanced, it had grown quickly and had much to show for on the outside, but underneath the soil it had small and fragile roots. It had nothing to support the quickly growing plant. When the sun came out, though the sun was supposed to be good for the plants and cause more growth, they withered under its oppresion, they "withered because they had no moisture" (8:6). How could they get any moisture when the rocks were blocking the root from growth?

It's amazing how much a trial can reveal about a person. Outwardly, everything may look like it's going okay, growth is occuring, maybe even at a fast rate. But when hard things come my way, it will quickly show the condition of my root system. I need a source of constant strength (or moisture) or else I will quickly fall. If I am letting rocks grow in my heart that are preventing me from becoming rooted and receiving nourishment, when tribulations come, even though they are supposed to be beneficial for me, causing growth, I will quickly topple over from malnourishment. How could it ever bear fruit with such a root system?

Psalm 1:3 describes the godly man, "He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields it's fruit in season and whose leaf does not whither. Whatever he does prospers."

I must constantly press to draw from the "streams of water," looking to God for my source of strength so that I will have the stability to grow and mature when trials come instead of toppling over from weak roots. My goal for today is to spend time this evening in prayer and the Word to strengthen my root system and receive spiritual nourishment so that I will better equipped.