Matthew 13:31–32
31He presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; 32and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”
Focused Thinking:
CONTEXT: Through this parable, Jesus explained that his kingdom would have a small beginning.
It began with Jesus alone and, upon his ascension, was left in the care of twelve apostles and just a few hundred other followers.
Jesus compared this beginning to the mustard seed, which was the smallest seed that a farmer used. The mustard seed was so small that it would take almost twenty thousand seeds to make one ounce. No other seed so small produced such a large plant.
From this very tiny seed would grow a large shrub—the largest shrub among all the herbs that the farmer would plant in his garden. A mustard shrub could grow ten to twelve feet in just a few weeks.
His point was that just as a tiny seed will grow into the largest of garden plants, so God’s kingdom will produce many people who truly believe. Jesus stressed the future greatness of the kingdom, which then seemed insignificant.
Personal Application:
What small seeds are we planting right now?
Overton seeds
Single Parent seeds
Freedom Extreme seeds
Memphis Union Mission
Children Ministry seeds
Middle School seeds
High School seeds
Invest and Invite seeds
Imperfect seeds
- We need to sow seeds with the poor.
- We need to sow seeds with the prisoners.
- We need to sow seeds with the sick.
- We need to sow seeds with the oppressed.
- If we reach the people nobody wants; I believe God will give us the people everybody wants.
Interactive Prayer:
Father, give us a harvest. Give us the privilege of reaping seeds we haven’t sown as well as seeds we have sown. Father, give us the privilege of seeing small seeds grow up into big strong trees firmly planted by streams of water. Father, I pray for Ebony and her family. Protect them from the seeds of God’s Word being stolen. I pray that the seeds will fall on good soil. Father, I pray that a higher percentage of our seeds to fall on good soil. Father, I ask, seek, and knock for a harvest.
Give us a harvest of salvations and baptisms. Give us a harvest of people repenting of casual consumerism Christianity. Give us a harvest of people repenting of idolatry. Give us a harvest of people coming out of the middle. Give us a harvest of people who will love God, love people, and make disciples. Give us a harvest of people who will define their Christian life by serving and giving. I pray that the words of Brett Lawson will be prophetic for this church. I pray that we won’t back away. I pray that we will just keep coming. I pray that we will sow seeds and reap a harvest bigger than any of us can ask, think, or imagine.
I pray for David Montague and the Memphis Teachers Residency program. I pray that we can develop a great partnership with him and completely change Overton High School, and the schools that feed into Overton. I pray that train up teachers to be on mission in the classroom. I pray for a harvest of men and women to train up in leadership from Overton. I pray for the opportunity to plant a church in Overton. I pray for a harvest of an entire community. I pray that You would use us to change one community and that we could replicate that with other communities. I pray that we could train other churches to do the same.
Father, I pray that You will protect us from the evil one. I pray that You will bind him by Your blood, by Your name, and by Your authority. I pray that you will bind him from our people and from our property. I pray that You will put a hedge of protection around our people. I pray that You protect our recovery people from relapsing. I pray that You will protect our students from sexual temptations and from the influence of drinking and drugs. I pray that You use Chris Shivers with the Singles in a powerful way. I pray that they will become a force to be reckoned with for the advance of the kingdom. I pray that You will protect the marriages in our church. Father, please bind the thief from stealing the seeds of the Word of God. I pray that the seeds of Love Works will fall on good soil. I pray that the seeds of Love Works will multiply some 100-fold, some 60-fold, and some 30-fold.
Father, I pray that people will make an investment in Overton High School tomorrow by buying T-shirts and going to the game. I pray that You will give us a harvest of love and service tomorrow. I pray that more than 500 people will go to the game. Father, please do whatever you have to do to persuade people and to remove excuses. Father, I pray that our people will see it as an incredibly fun activity. I pray that people will truly look forward to encouraging people and cheering people on. Father, give the Overton team favor. I pray that You will bless them and reveal Yourself to them. Father, show the coaches and the players your glory. Father, bring true revival and spiritual awakening to that team, to the cheerleaders, and to the school through our church.
Father, show our people the beauty of Your love and the beauty of loving as You love. I pray that our people will become the most loving people in the world. I pray that our church will be known by love. I pray that all of our groups will make Sept 3rd a group event. Father, make us a people who love You supremely, love one another supremely, and make disciples with complete and total commitment.
Father, I pray that the Holy Spirit will fall upon us tomorrow. Please blow through our church with great force tomorrow. I pray that Your Spirit will do what I cannot do. I pray that the kindness of God will bring forth repentance. I pray that people will experience godly sorrow that leads to repentance without repent instead of world sorrow that leads to death. Father, give our people the gift of repentance and faith tomorrow. Father, give a harvest of repentance tomorrow. I pray that we would see a harvest from the past three weeks. I pray for the ability to filled up with all the fullness of You tomorrow. Give me the ability to speak with the authority of the Holy Spirit. Give me the ability speak in the power and demonstration of the Spirit. I pray that I will sense Your Spirit tomorrow and speak Your Words the way You would speak them. Father, give me the ability to love people the way you love people. Father, help me be used of You tomorrow in such a way that everybody responds to You immediately instead of delayed obedience.
Father, make everything that we says is true tomorrow be true in and through the lives of our people. Father, I pray that our people will respond to You in a relational way, I pray that they respond to others in a relational way. I pray that You will bust through the resistance tomorrow. I pray that You will flood the altars tomorrow. I pray that You will bring about life change. I pray that everything will finally make sense tomorrow. I pray that people truly “get it” tomorrow. Father, make us soldiers of love. Make us men and women who are on a mission of love. I pray that people will repent of the world tomorrow. I pray that they will see Your glory and run to You. Father, if we run to You; we automatically run away from sin.
Father, we need to see Your power. We need to experience Your presence. We need to fulfill Your purpose. Father, grow our church spiritually, numerically, and financially. Father, bring us a harvest of lost souls. Bring us a harvest of disciple-makers. Bring us a harvest of leaders. Bring us a harvest o givers. Father, make us a people who humble ourselves, pray, seek Your face, and turn form our wicked ways. Come, Holy Spirit Come. Come dear Jesus. Come Spirit Come. We need You more than we need anything else. Father, we need to see and experience Your Holy Fire. Father, give us the ability to jump start our church into a season of momentum. Make us a people who keep the commandments of God on our hearts. I pray that we will teach them diligently to our children.
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