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1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop--a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 He who has ears, let him hear." 10 The disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?" 11 He replied, "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12 Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables: "Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. 14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: "`You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. 15 For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.'[1] 16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. 18 "Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. 22 The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. 23 But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown." 
In this story, Jesus told the crowd about an investment opportunity that would produce a guaranteed profit of up to 100 percent. How can you get in on this? The deal is simple. If you'll just prepare the soil of your hearts that the word of God will find fertile ground, it will yield a massive spiritual harvest in your life.
How do you prepare the soil of your heart for the seed? By following the example of the farmer. He has to set aside time to plow, weed, fertilize and water the soil. A farmer knows that good soil doesn't just appear out of nowhere. It requires a planning, nurturing, cultivating---and a good measure of effort.
The same is true in the spiritual realm. A follower of Jesus Christ must set aside a daily time to examine his heart and weed out every thought and attitude that will choke the effectiveness of God's word. He must cultivate his heart through prayer and water it by meditating on God's purposes for his life. When the soil is prepared this way, the seed will be ready to germinate; that's when the scriptures will take root in the believer's life and begin to produce an abundant harvest.
Do your best to set aside time every day for prayer and scripture reading. And remember it will be time well invested. In fact, it will bring a huge spiritual profit---guaranteed!
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