Are You a Squirrel or a Bird When it Comes to Feeding on God's Word?

A devotion my Mom wrote a few years back.  Thought it was worth sharing......

I was standing at the kitchen window and looking out this morning, after my quiet time with God.  There at the bird feeder, where usually birds come to eat all day, was a squirrel eating the seeds that had fallen on the ground from the feeder.  She doesn't come everyday, but when she does, she eats her belly full.  Then she scampers off to do her folly and comes back every now and then to eat some more.  A little bird was standing there at a distance watching, but making no move to disturb the squirrel, just allowing her to eat the seed. 

The picture I saw was one of a spiritually hungry believer (the bird) who knows who she is in Christ Jesus, and she knows she  needs the seed (God's word) everyday.  So, faithfully she comes every single day to eat the seed (the word of God). 

Then I saw the carnal believer (the squirrel), who has  not fully grasped who she is in Christ Jesus.  After being gone for days or weeks and taking part in the world.  She doesn't sustain her balance because she is still out in the world eating all it has to offer her.  She realizes that God is drawing her back to Him, wooing her to eat the good seed that will heal, nourish and strengthen her (His Word).  The more often she comes to eat from the good seed, the more she understands who she truly is in Christ and how much she needs the Word of God.  Sooner or later, she begins to mature as God's daily seed gives balance to her life.   

Sometimes we are more like the squirrel.  Can you relate? 

Reminds me of Luke 8:5-15 The Parable of the Sower.   The Sower is God, the seed is the Word of God, some seed fell on the road where it was trampled underfoot. Some fell on the rocky soil, but as soon as it grew up it withered away because it had no root, some fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it out.  Other seed fell on good soil and grew up and produced a crop a hundred times as great.  The soil represents the hearers or the hearts of the hearers.  All soil received the seed (heard the word), but with very different results. 

Which soil is your heart most like today?  If we are honest, we have experienced every type of soil where the Word of God is concerned.  There have been times in my walk when my heart has been like the "road" where it is heard but certainly not heeded.  Other times my heart has been like the "rocky" soil.  I've been attentive and heard the word and begun to apply it but because I wasn't "rooted" in Chris but rooted in the things of this world or self, it yields no fruit.  Of course we have all had days when our hearts were like the "thorny" soil, where the cares and worries of this world of the temporal things have choked out the word of God.  Oh, but then there are the days where hopefully we live most of our life with God; where our hearts are the "good" soil.  We not only receive the seed but because we are rooted in Christ, we respond to the heart of our Father with honest, open hearts and it grows up and produces a crop a hundred times as great. 

Dear Lord, you are the master gardener you know condition of hearts (soil).  You alone know how to cultivate our hearts into the good soil.  I ask you today dear Lord to prepare our hearts, to give us the "Son", the Living Water and remove the rocks, thorns and anything else that is preventing us from hearing and heeding your word.  I want to be a fruitful believer.  Producing fruit that will last.  Thank you Jesus.