Mark has put all 3 parables together.
Sower- The Kingdom of God is a mystery. It begins with the condition of your heart. Some people know everything about the church and the Bible but there is no weight. You can be in God's Word, in church with His people but nothing is happening. It's not about doing more. When the heart yields, it is a deliberate and quiet obedience. What happens when the truth lands? Stay with it! Ask yourself, what is the saying to me right now? A closed heart is hard ground.A soft heart is messy but honest. This is hard but stay with it. Stop escaping it. Be honest before God when no one is looking. Be who you are. Let God speak.
1) Hard ground- nothing changes if you don't let it.
2) Shallow ground- moved in the moment. No changes, no transformations.
3) Thorny ground -competing loyalties. They may be crowded but not necessarily evil, can be good things. Those things can become a substitute for surrender. The soil is too full- Ego, fear,self protection and the need for control. What happens in you when the Word lands? You can hear the Word you whole life and it doesn't form you if you don't let it.
4) Good soil-real true surrender. Receive it and yield to it.
What is the condition of your soil? Is it soft enough to change you? Ask God to soften your heart. We don't have to figure it out. Tell God you don't want to.just hear the Word but let it change you and take root.