The Upper Room Daily Devotional from Nashville, Tennessee, United States “WEEDING OUT NEGATIVITY” for Friday, 5 August 2016 with Scripture: Mark 4:3-9

The Upper Room Daily Devotional from Nashville, Tennessee, United States “WEEDING OUT NEGATIVITY” for Friday, 5 August 2016 with Scripture: Mark 4:3 “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he sowed, some seed fell alongside the path; and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Other seed fell on rocky patches where there was not much soil. It sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow; 6 but when the sun rose, the young plants were scorched; and since their roots were not deep, they dried up. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked it; so that it yielded no grain. 8 But other seed fell into rich soil and produced grain; it sprouted, and grew, and yielded a crop — thirty, sixty, even a hundred times what was sown.” 9 And he concluded, “Whoever has ears to hear with, let him hear!”
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Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.[Philippians 4:8 (NIV)]
After recent heavy rains, I was eager to get back to work in my garden. Not having to spend so much time watering had been a welcome relief during the heat of summer, and my plants were flourishing. The weeds prospered even more. They seemed to grow at twice the rate of the other plants, choking them out in the process.
My mind is similar to my garden. Negative thoughts seem to crop up faster than the positive ones and threaten to overpower them. As I do with the weeds, I must be diligent in pulling out destructive thoughts by the roots before they take over my thinking.
I have found that the best way for me to weed my thoughts is to start each day focused on Bible reading and prayer. Setting my mind on God’s truth first thing in the morning acts as a protective shield throughout the day. When negative thoughts arise, God’s promises help me to recognize them and give me strength to remain focused on God’s truth.
Read more from the author, here.
More from Sandee Story

There never seems to be an end to the proliferation of “weeds” that try to crowd out all the positive. Staying focused on God’s word continues to be my focus in combatting negative and anxious thoughts. With all the recent violence and hatred erupting throughout the world, this has become more critical than ever.
I am having to adjust my morning quiet time as we are in the midst of a major home renovation and have adopted a new rescue puppy, Sophia. Morning walks followed by constant interruptions and noise at home have been a challenge for us both as we continue to work on her obedience training and my quiet time. God is teaching me patience and flexibility, which are two qualities I definitely need to grow into. The joy of having a new puppy far outweighs the minor difficulties and inconveniences. Dogs are such a wonderful example of God’s unconditional love. Being greeted by her happy face and wagging tail brings such joy and peace in the midst of stressful situations. I am so thankful to be a “dog mom” again!
Lately my battles have been less with weeds and more with all the animals (deer, raccoon, squirrels and foxes) that seem intent on eating everything out of my garden. We have been unable to keep them out even with a fence. Today I found half-eaten green tomatoes thrown over the fence. And inside the fence something had eaten half of my baby watermelon. I was so excited that I had finally succeeded in growing a watermelon and then my hopes were dashed. I think I’ve finally made the decision just to go the the Farmer’s Market! God is so faithful in presenting new situations (even in the little things) which stretch us and encourage us to grow in the fruits of the Spirit. My prayer is to surrender all to God.[Sandee Story, Check out Sandee's blog here:, http://sandeestory.blogspot.com/.]

The Author: Sandee Story (North Carolina, USA)
Thought for the Day: Staying focused on God’s truth helps me to think clearly.
Prayer: Dear God, thank you for giving us your word of truth to lead us and to guide us in following your will. Amen.
Prayer focus: GARDENERS

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