There are two kinds of Christian lives: the fallow, and the plowed. Fallow ground is uncultivated, unused, idle, and dormant. It was probably plowed at one time, but because it remained untended, it hardened and became crusted until finally it needed to be broken up again in order to receive seed.
In the same way, the fallow-life Christian is content with himself; content with whatever fruit he may have produced in the past. He is tolerant of the self-searching of those earnestly seeking God. Yet he remains undisturbed.
He has lost his passion for the presence of God in his life. He looks back with satisfaction at the glory that once was. He has lost the spirit of adventure.
The plowed life is the life that has remained prepared for the fresh activity of the Spirit. Discontented with the inactivity of the fallow field, he yearns to be cultivated and developed to receive seed again and again. He sees that his purpose is to be the habitation of seed.
Without the proper environment, seed cannot grow. The miracle of growth can only happen in cultivated ground. God's words are God in seed form. All of God's words contain the power necessary to cause them to bear fruit in your life.
When you plant seed for a flower, all of the color of the bloom, the size of its petal, and every aspect of that type of flower will be contained in the seed.
God wants His seed (His Word) planted in your life. That way all that God is, you can become. His seed growing up within you begins to change you to be like Him.
Only the life that is plowed and cultivated is eligible to see the miraculous growth of God's seed. Miracles follow the plow. It is those who reach out in their spirit to seek and know God's ways that become usable soil.
Diligently seeking Him is the open door to breaking up the hardened, unusable ground in your life. Notice the Moffatt translation of this same verse; "...break up your fallow ground, by seeking knowledge of the Eternal...."
There is a depth of spiritual power that God desires for you. You are the only one who can determine how much of that depth will be attained.
"As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God...Deep calleth unto deep..." (Ps. 42: 1-2,7).
The deep longing and yearning of your inner man is to know God and His ways more intimately. That is God's desire for you. Psalm 63:1,2 from the Amplified Bible reads, "O God, You are my God; earnestly will I seek you, my inner self thirsts for you, my flesh longs and is faint for you, in a dry and weary land, where no water is; So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory."
How far are you willing to go to quench the thirst that is within you? Some people are just not determined enough, or desperate enough to seek Him. Those who are willing to seek God till He comes and rains righteousness upon them will experience the outpouring of the Spirit in a new dimension.
The more deeply you yearn for God to pour Himself through you, the more deeply He will cultivate you. Fruitfulness is always preceded by cultivation. Seek Him until you experience the rain.
Excerpt permission granted by Dennis Burke Ministries