The sights, sounds, and smells of the holidays lift our spirits and warm our hearts. But these holy days are frozen in melancholy for those who work the land: For the farmer whose acreage lies fallow under a blanket of snow and ice, for the backyard gardener whose little plot sits as dull and lifeless as the gray skies above.
Yet, as a new friend observes about winter’s passing, every day gets us closer to spring. And soon the seed catalogs will start arriving. And careful decisions will have to be made about what to plant and where to sow. Created by the explosive sweep of God’s almighty hand and holding the very stuff of stars, the good earth is perfectly suited for growing. And the presence of such generous divinity demands that only the best seed be sunk into the ground.
But good seed costs money. And these days the household budget is already stretched thin, so you decide to cut back your garden-spending for the upcoming spring. Rather than driving all the way down to the feed store, and wasting all that gas, to buy expensive seed with money you really don’t have – rather than having to pay the extra cost of shipping an online order of still-costly seed, you stumble upon a lifehack that’ll save you time, money, and energy.
Your cheap-and-easy route finds you wandering an overgrown wild field, where you go to work stripping seeds off weeds and brambles and quickly amass a varied bagful. Then you head home and sew those seeds in your garden. While their colorful blooms will garnish the summer landscape with hints of flavor, come fall, the bankrupt harvest nourishes none of mind, body, or soul. No fruit, no vegetables. You harvest what you sow, only reap what you plant.
Thus you must carefully manage your land. Yet we somehow forget that when cultivating our hearts.
As the soil is an exquisite gift from God, so also are our hearts. And like the land, your heart is perfectly suited for growing. And what you put into your heart must be carefully selected, because seeds become thoughts – some beautiful and nourishing, some noxious and lethal. To riff on an Old Testament adage, “Be careful what you think, because your thoughts run your life.” (Proverbs 4:23)
The proof is in the pudding: Witness those who remain patient, optimistic, and gracious in the face of fear, negativity, and brokenness. Perhaps they have sown seeds of goodness and are reaping the harvest. Then observe those whose outlooks are sour and bitter, those whose outlooks are gloomy and cold. Perhaps theirs are hearts and minds seeded with weeds and bramble.
The comparisons are bracing: Our hearts are the garden, and our thoughts are the seeds. And the warnings are at once hopeful and dire: Be selective in what you plant. For you harvest what you sow, only reap what you plant. Be careful what you think, for your thoughts run your life. So best guard your heart, and let Jesus be its guardian. As another suggests, “Like a trained soldier at the gate of a city, [Jesus] stood watch over his mind. He stubbornly guarded the gateway to his heart. Many thoughts were denied entrance.”
Like thoughts of arrogance and notions of grandeur: When the people want to make him king, Jesus in humility refuses the crown.
Like when the apostle Peter questions the necessity of Jesus dying on a cross, and the Lord sends the messenger of heresy scurrying: “Satan, get lost!”
Like when shame and humiliation are thrust upon his shoulders, Jesus refuses to bear the load of mockery and ridicule.
Jesus guards his heart, and so must you and I. To enjoy Christ’s gift of a pure heart, we must filter our thoughts through the example of Jesus. Your mind is the doorway to your heart – the fertile ground where you determine which seeds to sow and the ones to discard. And the Holy Spirit of Jesus stands ready to help you manage your thoughts, filtering out the weedy and nurturing the fruitful.
The Spirit of God in Christ Jesus guards your heart, standing daily at its threshold, ready to tell you whether to throw open the door and let a thought enter in, or whether to slam shut the door and bolt the lock, ready to capture with handcuffs and leg irons any thought not fit to darken your doorstep.
Here’s how the once-rash and -impulsive Peter describes the powerful work of the Holy Spirit who is, after all, our guardian and guide. According to the apostle’s first New Testament letter, here’s what the Holy Spirit enables you to do:
All of you must clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time.
Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. Discipline yourselves, keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in your faith, for you know that your brothers and sisters in all the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering.
And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the power forever and ever. Amen. (1 Peter 5:5b-11)
You harvest what you sow, only reap what you plant. So, guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. A pure heart, the Word of the Lord: The more selective you are with the seed, the more delighted you’ll be with the crop.
Thanks be to God!
Pastor Grant M. VanderVelden shared this message on the Sixth Sunday of Advent, December 12, 2025, at First Presbyterian Church in Waukon, Iowa, USA. The message is adapted from the reflections of Max Lucado and is part of Pastor Grant’s Advent series, “Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room.”