Podcasts about Soil

In “The Long Recovery: Farmers and Hurricane Helene,” Gravy producer Irina Zhorov looks at how North Carolina farmers are building back after Hurricane Helene and finds that many still have a long way to go. The storm hit in late September, 2024. It killed at least 250 people and left nearly $80 billion worth of damage, the majority of that in mountainous western North Carolina. Farmers, who work flood-prone bottomlands and steep slopes in the high country, suffered catastrophic losses. There are thousands of farms in the region, which prides itself on its local foodways and strong network of producers. On many of these farms the floodwaters either deposited feet of sand on fields or washed away topsoil, sometimes to the bedrock—it just depended on where in a creek's bend their land lay. Soil takes hundreds of years to form and is a farmer's most important asset, but it's not yet clear how to address the effects of such dramatic land shifts. Extension agents are recommending farmers try planting special crops that help pump nutrients back into the dirt, but these cover crops can take years to show results. Many farmers would have a hard time financially taking fields out of production for extended periods. They also worry that their buyers may not wait that long before seeking produce from other farms. Still, it's not all bad. The storm did such dramatic damage that some farmers are starting almost from scratch and using that as an opportunity to build back better. Maybe that means putting in modern apple varieties, updating trellis systems, or changing the crops they grow. One farmer we spoke to is refocusing her farm on agribusiness and increasing her flower plantings. Another farmer is working to develop a method of growing raspberries that would use an annual rotation, like with tomatoes, rather than maintaining shrubs for a decade, which requires labor-intensive pruning and would leave them susceptible to potential future storms. This year, farmers have largely been cleaning up, evaluating, and figuring out how to proceed. The longer work of rebuilding could stretch for years to come. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, soil microbiologist and founder of The Soil Food Web Dr. Elaine Ingham discusses what a bacteria-dominated soil looks like and why one would move to shift to a more fungal-dominated soil.   Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!   Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower. Follow Modern Grower:  Instagram  Instagram Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:  Carrot Cashflow  Farm Small Farm Smart  Farm Small Farm Smart Daily  The Growing Microgreens Podcast  The Urban Farmer Podcast  The Rookie Farmer Podcast  In Search of Soil Podcast Check out Diego's books:  Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon   Ready Farmer One on Amazon **** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

In this powerful conversation, Ste sits down with Steven Jaggers, a neuromuscular therapist and founder of Somatic Breathwork, who has helped thousands of people heal from chronic stress and trauma. Together, they unpack the true meaning of “somatic,” why connection is essential to healing, how parents can support their children in expressing emotions, and what happens when we let go of the constant search for self-help and instead enter a state of genuine welcoming. Radical Health Radio is produced by Heart & Soil, a beef organ supplements company helping hundreds of thousands of people achieve radical health. Heart & Soil was founded by Dr. Paul Saladino, a double board-certified MD and founder of the animal-based eating philosophy. Visit heartandsoil.co to reclaim your birthright to radical health with the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet.

Welcome to episode 253 of Growers Daily! We cover: plants feeding the soil, why we avoid disturbance (within reason) and woodchips in the tunnel pathways.. OR NOT.  We are a Non-Profit! 

In this episode, Associate Professor of agricultural chemistry and plant biology at the University of Basilicata, Dr. Adriano Sofo, shares what role soil macrofauna play in maintaining soil health.   Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!   Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower. Follow Modern Grower:  Instagram  Instagram Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:  Carrot Cashflow  Farm Small Farm Smart  Farm Small Farm Smart Daily  The Growing Microgreens Podcast  The Urban Farmer Podcast  The Rookie Farmer Podcast  In Search of Soil Podcast Check out Diego's books:  Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon   Ready Farmer One on Amazon **** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Distinguishing Humane Nationalism from Pathological Ideologies Guest Name: Daniel Mahoney Summary:Nationalism must be distinguished from pathological forms like "blood and soil" ideology, which champions ethnic rooting and the subordination of others. Moderate, humane national loyalty is tied to self-government and common humanity, rejecting the path that leads to "zoological wars." Critics often unfairly conflate nationalism with isolationism or imperialism. 1865 MONTENEGRO

Distinguishing Humane Nationalism from Pathological Ideologies Guest Name: Daniel Mahoney Summary:Nationalism must be distinguished from pathological forms like "blood and soil" ideology, which champions ethnic rooting and the subordination of others. Moderate, humane national loyalty is tied to self-government and common humanity, rejecting the path that leads to "zoological wars." Critics often unfairly conflate nationalism with isolationism or imperialism. 1916 SWITZERLAND

Harvest machinery is getting heavier and heavier, increasing the risk for soil compaction. Learn more about how you can combat soil compaction during harvest and ensure the health of future crops. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Synopsis:  Mahmoud Khalil examines why the question of Palestine is a test for U.S. democracy. This show is made possible by you! To become a sustaining member go to LauraFlanders.org/donateDescription: Mahmoud Khalil was coming home from an Iftar dinner with his pregnant wife on March 8, 2025 when he was detained without a warrant and transported 1,500 miles to a Louisiana detention camp. A negotiator for the 2024 pro-Palestine student protests at Columbia University, Khalil was a legal permanent resident who'd committed no violence or crime; his abduction shocked the world. The Trump administration was seeking to expel Khalil, not for his acts, but for his otherwise legal “beliefs, statements and associations” which Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in short letter, would “compromise a compelling US foreign policy interest.” A New Jersey federal judge threw out that case and Khalil was released after 104 days in detention, but the backlash keeps on coming. In this courageous conversation, Mahmoud Khalil joins Laura Flanders to discuss the night of his terrifying detainment, the “Palestinian Exception” and the case brought against him by the Trump administration. They are alleging errors on his green card application and have ordered Khalil to be deported — possibly to Algeria or Syria where his life would be under threat. Despite the risks of deportation, Mahmoud Khalil continues to speak out, and he and his legal team have filed a civil rights lawsuit with the U.S. District Court of New Jersey against the Trump administration to challenge his arrest and detention by ICE. Join Khalil and Flanders as they ask why the question of Palestine is a test for U.S. democracy — and one we are failing.“. . . [The Trump administration is] using Palestine. They are using the pretext of antisemitism and combating antisemitism to go after us because they know that this is the weakness of the Democratic party. When they go to the universities, they start with combating antisemitism, but then the second ask would be to abolish all DEI programs, to sanitize the history on slavery and the inception of America. And the list goes on and on and on.” - Mahmoud Khalil“People mistakenly think that what's happening is far from their doors. They think that this would never happen to them, because of their social status, because of their ethnicity or any of that. But what's happening around us should alarm us . . . It's not about that the U.S. is becoming authoritarian. It is authoritarianism now.” - Mahmoud KhalilGuest:  Mahmoud Khalil, Human Rights AdvocateUPDATE - since this interview was recorded-  “The recent decision by a federal court in Massachusetts in the AAUP v. Rubio case confirms what Mahmoud has maintained all along: that Trump administration officials have acted in concert to suppress and silence anti-genocide, pro-Palestinian speech, in violation of the First Amendment. We look forward to the remedies that court will order and to pursuing Mahmoud's own separate and ongoing federal court challenge to this unconstitutional policy.”  -Ramzi Kassem, co-director of CLEAR, and one of the lawyers representing Mahmoud Khalil.Full Conversation Release: While our weekly shows are edited to time for broadcast on Public TV and community radio, we offer to our members and podcast subscribers the full uncut conversation. These audio exclusives are made possible thanks to our member supporters.Watch the special report on YouTube; PBS World Channel September 21st, and on over 300 public stations across the country (check your listings, or search here via zipcode). Listen: Episode airing on community radio September 24th  (check here to see if your station is airing the show) & available as a podcast.Full Episode Notes are located HERE.Music Credit:  'Thrum of Soil' by Bluedot Sessions, and original sound design by Jeannie HopperRESOURCES:Related Laura Flanders Show Episodes:• Behind the Barricades at Columbia University: “The Encampments” for Gaza- Watch / Listen:  Episode and Uncut Conversation• Israel, Hamas & Gaza: UN Insider Craig Mokhiber Exposes Genocide, Apartheid & Human Rights Failures- Watch / Listen:  Episode and Uncut Conversation• Organizing for Gaza Ceasefire Through Policy & Protest: Meet JVP & NY Assemblymember Mamdani- Watch / Listen:  Episode and Uncut Conversation•  Israel-Palestine News - YouTube Playlist   Related Articles and Resources:•  Federal judge rules Trump unconstitutionally targeted Gaza war protesters for deportation, by Michael Casey, Associated Press, PBS• What is Better US, the group pushing to deport pro-Palestinain students? By Al Jazeera Staff, March 25, 2025, Al Jazeera• Google Secretly Handed ICE Data About Pro-Palestine Student Activist, by Shawn Musgrave, September 16, 2025, The Intercept• UC Berkeley Gives Trump Administration 160 Names in Antisemitism Investigation, by Brian Krans, September 12, 2025, KQED• Block the Bombs Act To Israel Support Laura Flanders and Friends by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/c/lauraflandersandfriends Laura Flanders and Friends Crew: Laura Flanders-Executive Producer, Writer; Sabrina Artel-Supervising Producer; Jeremiah Cothren-Senior Producer; Veronica Delgado-Video Editor, Janet Hernandez-Communications Director; Jeannie Hopper-Audio Director, Podcast & Radio Producer, Audio Editor, Sound Design; Sarah Miller-Development Director, Nat Needham-Editor, Graphic Design emeritus; David Neuman-Senior Video Editor, and Rory O'Conner-Senior Consulting Producer. FOLLOW Laura Flanders and FriendsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauraflandersandfriends/Blueky: https://bsky.app/profile/lfandfriends.bsky.socialFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraFlandersAndFriends/Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lauraflandersandfriendsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFLRxVeYcB1H7DbuYZQG-lgLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lauraflandersandfriendsPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/lauraflandersandfriendsACCESSIBILITY - The broadcast edition of this episode is available with closed captioned by clicking here for our YouTube Channel

William's Permaculture Design Course - https://patreon.com/ThePermacultureConsultant?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_fan&utm_content=copyLink William's Channel - http://www.youtube.com/@UC8I_-lIus_Z-fNkvoCkJ4DA https://linktr.ee/ThePermacultureConsultant?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=13182d07-8cfe-4e2f-9b52-aa564df0fcf6 Eric Seider's Youtube Channel - http://www.youtube.com/@EricSeider Eric Seider's Tshirts - https://www.ericseider.com/pimpgear Homestead Twins Stickers - https://homesteadtwins.com/ Soil Savior Products - https://www.soilsaviors.org/order?aff=654693f413fad4692e058e9eb0779d3667638550392d22d979d6d2d4daf720b3 Mineral King: https://www.mineralking.life/ Promo Code: detox - Get 10% Off Living Soil Foundation GiveSendGo - https://givesendgo.com/GE2E8?utm_source=sharelink&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=GE2E8 If you would prefer to send a check: Living Soil Foundation PO Box 2098 Mars Hill, NC 28754 Healing for the A.G.E.S. Annual Fall Conference - https://www.myehialoha.org/ages-fall-conference-2025-make-yourself-healthy-again-myha/#a_aid=perma Promo Code: perma https://linktr.ee/permapasturesfarm Richardson Nutritional Center https://rncstore.com/perma Promo Code: perma - Get 10% Off WAVwatch - $100 Off - https://buy.wavwatch.com/?ref=billy100 Promo Code: BILLY100 Redmond Products - 15% Off - https://glnk.io/oq72y/permapasturesfarm Promo Code: perma Get $50 Off EMP Shield: https://www.empshield.com Promo Code: perma Harvest Right Freeze Dryer: https://affiliates.harvestright.com/1247.html Above Phone - https://abovephone.com/?above=160 Promo Code - PERMA $50 Off Online Pig Processing: https://sowtheland.com/online-workshops-1 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user

Sovereign Health Summit with Barbara O'Neill, October 27-31, 2026 - https://www.sovereignhealthsummit.com/ William's Permaculture Design Course - https://patreon.com/ThePermacultureConsultant?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_fan&utm_content=copyLink William's Channel - http://www.youtube.com/@UC8I_-lIus_Z-fNkvoCkJ4DA https://linktr.ee/ThePermacultureConsultant?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=13182d07-8cfe-4e2f-9b52-aa564df0fcf6 Eric Seider's Youtube Channel - http://www.youtube.com/@EricSeider Eric Seider's Tshirts - https://www.ericseider.com/pimpgear Homestead Twins Stickers - https://homesteadtwins.com/ Soil Savior Products - https://www.soilsaviors.org/order?aff=654693f413fad4692e058e9eb0779d3667638550392d22d979d6d2d4daf720b3 Mineral King: https://www.mineralking.life/ Promo Code: detox - Get 10% Off Living Soil Foundation GiveSendGo - https://givesendgo.com/GE2E8?utm_source=sharelink&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=GE2E8 If you would prefer to send a check: Living Soil Foundation PO Box 2098 Mars Hill, NC 28754 Healing for the A.G.E.S. Annual Fall Conference - https://www.myehialoha.org/ages-fall-conference-2025-make-yourself-healthy-again-myha/#a_aid=perma Promo Code: perma https://linktr.ee/permapasturesfarm Richardson Nutritional Center https://rncstore.com/perma Promo Code: perma - Get 10% Off WAVwatch - $100 Off - https://buy.wavwatch.com/?ref=billy100 Promo Code: BILLY100 Redmond Products - 15% Off - https://glnk.io/oq72y/permapasturesfarm Promo Code: perma Get $50 Off EMP Shield: https://www.empshield.com Promo Code: perma Harvest Right Freeze Dryer: https://affiliates.harvestright.com/1247.html Above Phone - https://abovephone.com/?above=160 Promo Code - PERMA $50 Off Online Pig Processing: https://sowtheland.com/online-workshops-1 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user

In this thrilling conclusion to our Vaesen special, our investigators uncover the final secrets and close the case surrounding the town of Ōrebro. Will they do it in time to save those dearest to them and, when the dust settles, will anything truly have changed?Sound FX: freesound.org & pixabay.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can no-till really work in low-rainfall, compaction-prone soils? Taylor Jones, Director of Viticulture at Dierberg and Star Lane Vineyards in Santa Barbara, California shares insights from an 8-year vineyard floor trial comparing till vs. no-till practices. From vine vigor to soil health, microbial life to tractor fuel savings, Taylor reveals surprising data and offers practical advice for growers considering a shift in floor management.   Resources:   262: A Vineyard Research Site to Study Soil Health   253: Regenerative Agriculture: The Path the Climate Change Resilience? 211: Vineyard Nutrient Management Across the United States California Department of Food and Agriculture's Healthy Soils Initiative Healthy Soils Playlist Taylor Jones | LinkedIn  Vineyard Team Programs:  Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Donate Online Courses – DPR & CCA Hours SIP Certified – Show your care for the people and planet   Sustainable Ag Expo – The premiere winegrowing event of the year Vineyard Team – Become a Member  

"Now more than ever, a lot of farmers are caught in between this kind of industrial complex that that is difficult to pay the bills with - so you got to get subsidies, and the very real problem of being exposed to all the chemicals that they have  to use to make anything grow in soil that's been hammered and depleted." - Alex Woodard This episode isn't about animals. It's about the ground beneath our feet — and what happens when we forget that our own health, our food, and our future are all rooted in the soil. In his novel Ordinary Soil, Alex Woodard tells the multigenerational story of a farming family in the Oklahoma Panhandle, tracing how decades of industrial agriculture and chemical dependence have unraveled both the land and the people living on it. The result is a sweeping and deeply human narrative that blends science, history, and fiction to show just how interconnected we are with the earth that feeds us. This conversation is about more than farming. It's about resilience, healing, and the choices we still have to turn things around — for ourselves, our communities, and the planet.

Laura speaks to organizers in western North Carolina one year after Hurricane HeleneThis show is made possible by you! To become a sustaining member go to LauraFlanders.org/donateDescription:  When Hurricane Helene hit western North Carolina in September 2024, it came as a shock, hitting mountains, not coasts, and flooding rivers and communities with little experience of dealing with hurricanes. Helene quickly became one of the worst storms to ever hit the U.S., and in the absence of a quick response by state or federal government, other groups flooded in. Right-wing actors took advantage of the chaos, spreading rumors about looting and trying to boost their image. But it's the mutual aid networks — some long standing, others new that responded with creative, effective strategies to distribute water, medicine and help communities rebuild. In this episode, Laura Flanders heads to some of the hardest-hit areas in western North Carolina and speaks with community activists to hear the lessons to be learned for the future. Amid Trump cuts to FEMA and the National Weather Service, the future for storm recovery in North Carolina is uncertain. But one thing's for sure — mutual aid support like Pansy Collective, Cherokee One Feather, Racial Justice Coalition (RJC), Rural Organizing and Resilience (ROAR) and Collaborativa La Milpa have the strategies and solutions we may all need for survival.“It takes the state a long time to mobilize, and that might continue to be true as FEMA gets defunded . . . It's imperative that people fight to keep their disaster response funding, but until then, we need to know how to respond ourselves.” - RT“We were talking to the people that were staying in hotels because they had just lost everything and didn't know where they were going to get their next meal or their medicine. Talk to those people . . . We had those journalists, especially BIPOC journalists in Western North Carolina, making sure those stories were told.” - Brooklyn Brown (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians)Guests:• Brooklyn Brown (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians): Reporter, Cherokee One Feather•. RT Pansy• Ayotunde Dixson: Racial Justice Coalition (RJC)• Janet Kent: Rural Organizing and Resilience (ROAR)• Tai Little: SEAC Village• Alan Luis Ramirez: Collaborativa La Milpa• Mab Segrest: Anti Racist Research Program, Blueprint NC Watch the special report on YouTube; PBS World Channel, and on over 300 public stations across the country (check your listings, or search here via zipcode). Listen: Episode airing on community radio October 1st  (check here to see if your station is airing the show) & available as a podcast.Full Episode Notes are located HERE.Support Laura Flanders and Friends by becoming a member at https://www.patreon.com/c/lauraflandersandfriendsMusic Credit:  “Dawn Summit" and "Thrum of Soil" by Blue Dot Sessions. Original sound design by Jeannie Hopper.Special thanks:Davyne Dial, General Manager:  WPVM FM 103.7 - Community Radio for AshevilleMab SegrestBlueprint NCAdditional crew: DL Anderson, Jon LawwRESOURCES:Related Laura Flanders Show Episodes:•   Hurricane Helene 1 Year After, Survival Stories: Ayotunde Dixson, Tai Little: Listen: Exclusive Bonus Conversation•  Community Action After Hurricane Helene: BIPOC Media Answers the Call:  Watch / Listen: Episode and Full Uncut Conversation•  Power Grids Under Attack: The Threat is Domestic Terrorism – Not Drag Artists:  Watch / Listen: Episode•  Collective Real Estate: Land Without Landlords?:  Watch / Listen: Episode•  A Co-op Story: People's Construction in Rockaway:  Watch / Listen: EpisodeRelated Articles and Resources:•  Hurricane in the Mountains:  What we can learn from Western North Carolina, A Blueprint NC Special Report, by May Segrest with Sofia Trovato, May 2025•  North Carolina government calculates Hurricane Helene damages, needs at least $53B, October 24, 2024, The AP•  We Are The Relief:  How Queer Appalachian Mutual Aid Showed Up After Helene, by Basil Vaughn Soper, October 22, 2024, Them.us•  Sunday thought:  A national reckoning, (As we slide further into a dysfunctional police state), Robert Reich, July 6, 2025, Substack•  Across a Hundred Muddy Hollers:  How mutual aid is filling the gaps in the recovery of North Carolina mountain communities after Hurricane Helene, by Justin Cook, December 10, 2024, The Progressive Magazine•  When the Hurricane-Relief Worker Turns Out To Be a Neo-Nazi, by Tawnell D. Hobbs, Jennifer Levitz and Joe Barrett, October 10, 2024, The Wall Street Journal•  Hurricane Helene brews up storm of online falsehoods and threats, October 8, 2024, Institute for Strategic Dialogue•  Extremists Co-Opt Hurricane Response to Blame Israel, Incite a Storm of Hateful Narratives, October 11, 2024, by Center on Extremism, ADL Laura Flanders and Friends Crew: Laura Flanders-Executive Producer, Writer; Sabrina Artel-Supervising Producer; Jeremiah Cothren-Senior Producer; Veronica Delgado-Video Editor, Janet Hernandez-Communications Director; Jeannie Hopper-Audio Director, Podcast & Radio Producer, Audio Editor, Sound Design; Sarah Miller-Development Director, Nat Needham-Editor, Graphic Design emeritus; David Neuman-Senior Video Editor, and Rory O'Conner-Senior Consulting Producer. FOLLOW Laura Flanders and FriendsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauraflandersandfriends/Blueky: https://bsky.app/profile/lfandfriends.bsky.socialFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraFlandersAndFriends/Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lauraflandersandfriendsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFLRxVeYcB1H7DbuYZQG-lgLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lauraflandersandfriendsPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/lauraflandersandfriendsACCESSIBILITY - The broadcast edition of this episode is available with closed captioned by clicking here for our YouTube Channel

In this episode, Ste is joined by Dr. Paul Saladino for an action-packed discussion on thyroid health. They explore what to eat to nourish your thyroid, what to avoid, and how modern habits like fasting, cold plunging, and low-carb diets may be doing more harm than good.Ste and Paul also dig into why sleep, stress management, and raw milk can be powerful tools for metabolic healing, and how to test your thyroid function the right way, beyond just labs.Radical Health Radio is produced by Heart & Soil, a beef organ supplements company helping hundreds of thousands of people achieve radical health. Heart & Soil was founded by Dr. Paul Saladino, a double board-certified MD and founder of the animal-based eating philosophy. Visit heartandsoil.co to reclaim your birthright to radical health with the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet.Want to call into the show? Head to https://www.radicalhealthradio.com to learn more!Instagram: instagram.com/radicalhealthradioTikTok: tiktok.com/@radicalhealthradioHeart & Soil: heartandsoil.coTIMESTAMPS0:00 Intro1:15 Why your body temperature matters5:15 What is the thyroid?8:20 Hidden signs of thyroid issues13:50 Why women are affected most17:00 Ancestral tips for thyroid health19:10 Stress & thyroid health23:20 Contrast therapy28:05 Seed oils35:15 The importance of animal foods for thyroid health43:30 Should you eat the thyroid?51:55 Raw milk58:30 Diet vs exercise1:01:05 Lifestyle tips for thyroid health1:05:00 Vitamin D supplements1:09:00 How to test your thyroid health1:14:30 Labwork1:19:00 Take back control of your health1:22:30 Dr. Paul's biggest thyroid health tips1:23:45 Closing thoughts Message Jaret

Why does the Word of God produce such different results in people's lives? Jesus said the difference isn't the seed—it's the soil of the heart. In this message from Mark 4: 3–20, Chad Everett teaches on the thorny soil—the heart conditions that hear the Word but allow the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desire for other things to choke it out. These thorns don't just distract us—they suffocate the breath of God's Word in us. But God gives us a way to respond: cast your cares on Him, practice generosity that breaks the power of riches, and seek the one thing—Jesus—above all else. This isn't just about a parable; it's about your heart right now. Will you allow thorns to choke the Word, or will you receive it, accept it, and bear fruit that multiplies thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold? Lean in and let the Holy Spirit show you what needs to be cleared, so the Word can breathe fresh life in you. The Roads Church: https://theroads.church

#newproducts JP's Product Pick of the Week 9/30/25 Simple Soil Moisture Sensor - For micro:bit, and more https://www.adafruit.com/product/6362 Visit the Adafruit shop online - http://www.adafruit.com ----------------------------------------- LIVE CHAT IS HERE! http://adafru.it/discord Subscribe to Adafruit on YouTube: http://adafru.it/subscribe New tutorials on the Adafruit Learning System: http://learn.adafruit.com/ -----------------------------------------

Historian Alexis Dudden and graphic artist Kim Inthavong discuss their collaborative work on history, memory, and activism in Okinawa, Japan. Their piece, “Okinawa: Territory as Monument,” appeared in the History Lab section of the September 2022 issue of the AHR. Inthavong's graphic panels illustrating Okinawans' present-day struggle over US military presence in the islands can be previewed below.

I explain why I recommend collecting soil nutrient samples to a 10 cm (4 inch depth). I also discuss the importance of repeated soil sampling in order to check the change in test results over time. I look at a photo gallery from the 2025 Danish Golf Championship.Posts discussed include:https://www.asianturfgrass.com/post/recommended-soil-sampling-depth-for-turfgrass/https://www.asianturfgrass.com/post/a-pesticide-free-golf-course/PACE Turf post about Vixen 7x stand loupes: https://www.paceturf.org/memberedition/where-to-find-small-magnifying-loupesRead more about all kinds of turfgrass topics at https://www.asianturfgrass.com/Find a suite of decision-making tools at https://www.paceturf.org/Get free ATC newsletters at https://www.asianturfgrass.com/newsletter/ Find out more about soil tests with ATC at https://www.asianturfgrass.com/project/soil-tests/

c

What is it that makes a home? Interior design may not seem the first port of call to consider when we think about our gardens, but Michelle Ogundehin's approach to how our environments affect us shows just how important the outside world can be on our wellbeing. Michelle, who is a series judge on Interior Design Masters, describes herself as a homes therapist. After training as an architect, she was the Editor in Chief of Elle Decoration for over a decade. Now, through books such as Happy Inside, Michelle's approach encourages a holistic and thoughtful way to live that shrugs off trends for emotional insight. At Bedgebury Pinetum, where Michelle comes to walk, we speak about the life changes that helped her reassess how to live - and how bringing the outside in can change how we do, too. Glean more of Michelle's wisdom through her book, Happy Inside or her subscription service, the Happy Insiders Club. Michelle is also on Instagram and Substack, @michelleogundehin. This podcast is inspired by my book, Why Women Grow: Stories of Soil, Sisterhood and Survival, which is available in all good bookshops. We've also been photographing our guests and their gardens and you can see the beautiful images captured by India Hobson on my website and instagram account @⁠⁠alicevincentwrites⁠⁠. Use code WWGAUTUMN at ⁠⁠Crocus.co.uk⁠⁠'s checkout to save 20% on full priced plants. It is valid when you spend a minimum of £50 on full priced plants and / or bulbs. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other codes or offers.

Daisy Johnson made headlines when she became the youngest person ever shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2018, when she was 27. But, as she tells us in this episode, her shortlisted novel Everything Under was born of a time of great transition and growth. Water ripples throughout Daisy's work, from the remote rain-lashed house in Sisters to the ambiguous murk of Fen, with its shapeshifting characters who are inseparable from their landscape. On the banks of the Thames in Oxford, the author explains how water has accompanied her throughout her life, from the fenlands of her adolescence to the canals and rivers of her adulthood and matrescence. Daisy Johnson's latest publication, The Hotel, is a collection of short stories that offer the perfect accompaniment to autumn evenings. Long Wave, her next book, will be out next year.This podcast is inspired by my book, ⁠Why Women Grow: Stories of Soil, Sisterhood and Survival⁠, which is available in all good bookshops. We've also been photographing our guests and their gardens and you can see the beautiful images captured by India Hobson on my ⁠website⁠ and instagram account @⁠⁠⁠alicevincentwrites⁠⁠⁠. Use code WWGAUTUMN at ⁠⁠⁠Crocus.co.uk⁠⁠⁠'s checkout to save 20% on full priced plants. It is valid when you spend a minimum of £50 on full priced plants and / or bulbs. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other codes or offers.

Today we are at the Knepp Estate - a huge rewilding project across 3500 acres of land, undertaken by the writer and conservationist Isabella Tree and her family.As she outlines so beautifully in her bestselling memoir Wilding, when Isabella moved into Knepp, then her husband's family estate, she inherited more than just a castle. A crumbling property and a financially precarious farm were part of the package too. By the late 90s the couple found themselves in debt and realised they needed to stop farming - but what to do with all this land? Well that's when they decided to try an experiment to bring back wildlife that would become their life's work. 25 years later the result is Knepp Wildland. The site, part of which is open to the public, now plays host to all sorts of species including roaming pigs and ponies alongside some of Britain's rarest animals: turtle doves, nightingales and purple emperor butterflies.We join Isabella among the golden fields of ragwort and beneath nesting storks to learn what makes a woman tear up a rule book for the sake of ecology's survival - before being taken to one of the estate's best-kept secrets: the walled garden at the castle. As the sun sets, she tells us about the courage and conviction needed to make real change.If you'd like to find out more about Knepp, head to www.knepp.co.uk for information on how to visit and to sign up to the Knepp newsletter for events, the Rewilding Garden Blog, safaris and the Knepp Wilding podcast, which Isabella hosts. This podcast is inspired by my book, ⁠Why Women Grow: Stories of Soil, Sisterhood and Survival⁠, which is available in all good bookshops. We've also been photographing our guests and their gardens and you can see the beautiful images captured by India Hobson on my ⁠website⁠ and instagram account @⁠⁠⁠alicevincentwrites⁠⁠⁠. Use code WWGAUTUMN at ⁠⁠⁠Crocus.co.uk⁠⁠⁠'s checkout to save 20% on full priced plants. It is valid when you spend a minimum of £50 on full priced plants and / or bulbs. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other codes or offers.

How do you know if your soil is truly thriving?Soil microscopy can give you the answer by actually seeing who's living in your soil.Learn how to identify who's there, encourage the good guys, and build a living soil that feeds your trees naturally with Matt Powers.Matt is a bestselling author, an educator, a citizen scientist, and the creator of the website regenerativesoilscience.com.He's also a family man who teaches people around the world how to live more regeneratively.The host of the Orchard People radio show and podcast is Susan Poizner of the fruit tree care education website www.orchardpeople.com.  Susan is the author of four books on fruit tree care. Learn more here: https://learn.orchardpeople.com/booksShe is also the creator of five-star rated premium online fruit tree care education at: https://learn.orchardpeople.comHOW TO TUNE IN TO OUR PODCAST

This week Kevin talks with Gisele and Michael from G&B Organics about how healthy soil networks fuel plant growth, build resilience and create thriving gardens. Topics include the best soil mix ingredients, understanding plant nutrients, organics vs synthetics, the magic of fungi and living soil, and more.Check out G&B Organics Blue Ribbon Blend for indoor containers or outdoor potting, hanging baskets, and raised beds.Green Acres Garden PodcastGreen Acres Nursery & SupplyGreen Acres Garden Podcast GroupIn the greater Sacramento area? Learn how to make your yard Summer Strong and discover water-saving rebates at BeWaterSmart.info.

Makers Church is a diverse community committed to following Jesus and loving people. No matter where you are in your faith journey, you are welcome at Makers Church. As a Christ-centered, Bible-believing church, we exist to make on earth as it is in heaven by developing and commissioning followers of Jesus Christ to love God and love others•Subscribe to our channel for fresh content to keep you connected at Makers Church and inspired all week long. •Makers Church Service times:In-person & Online: Sunday's at 9:45am•GIVE US A FOLLOWWebsite: https://www.makerschurch.orgMakers Church Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MakersChurchMakers Church Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makerschurchSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/18RJPfsfH9zZxck4MTEXDI

Is the economic rationale of soil health always the top priority for farmers? Or, do other soil values rise to the top of farmers' minds, for example, having a healthy habitat for soil fungi? Kasper Krabbe, a doctoral student at Aarhus University in Denmark and a visiting guest scholar at Virginia Tech, returns to talk with Mary, Jeff, and Eric about his research into understanding farmers' intrinsic and extrinsic values in caring for soil. Kasper states that a deeper understanding of farmers' values and motivations is needed because of the degraded condition of agricultural soils globally. For instance, peer pressure to maintain and strive for tidy fields can inhibit experimentation with alternative minimum till systems and diverse cropping mixtures because of neighboring farmers' perceptions of certain aesthetics.    The videos Kasper created of his interviews and interactions with cooperating Danish farmers as part of the Soil Values research initiative can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxwHRB9ybRM As always, we encourage you to cooperate with other farmers, graziers, and gardeners for peer-to-peer learning and to follow the four core soil health principles: 1) Keep the soil covered -- Cover crops are our friends and allies;2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage in your field or garden as much as possible;3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity, soil structure, and life in the soil; and4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation, farm enterprises, and/or livestock integration.More details about the Virginia Farm-to-Table Feast and Harvest Celebration scheduled for Saturday, October 25, 2025, from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. at On Sunny Slope Farm in Rockingham, Virginia, can be found at https://virginiafarmtotable.org/2025vaf2tharvestcelebration/To enjoy recent 4 The Soil blog posts and additional soil health resources, please visit https://www.4thesoil.org/blog and https://www.virginiasoilhealth.org/. For questions about soil and water conservation practices, natural resource concerns, and the financial rationale of soil health, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.  4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today's program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.

Your life will transform deep in Christ when you feed on his Word. -------- Thank you for listening! Your support of Joni and Friends helps make this show possible.     Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Become part of the global movement today at www.joniandfriends.org   Find more encouragement on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.

Glyphosate is the most used herbicide in history - and it's in far more of your food than you realize. In this episode, Dr. Will Cole sits down with environmental health advocate Kelly Ryerson (Glyphosate Girl) to uncover the truth about Roundup, GMOs, and chemical farming. They discuss the connection between glyphosate and chronic illness, fertility, autoimmune conditions, and gut health, along with what you can do to limit exposure and support resilience in today's toxic world. For all links mentioned in this episode, visit www.drwillcole.com/podcastPlease note that this episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a direct or indirect financial interest in products or services referred to in this episode.Sponsors:You can get the Seven Minerals Magnesium Spray right now on Amazon. Just use code WILLCOLE7 at checkout to get 20% off your order.Visit gruns.co and use code WILLCOLE at checkout for up to 52% off your first order.Go to Quince.com/willcole for free shipping on your order and three hundred and sixty-five-day returns. Now available in Canada! Visit fromourplace.com/WILLCOLE and use code WILLCOLE for 10% off site wide.You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/WILLCOLE and using code WILLCOLE at checkout. Produced by Dear Media.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, author and educator Peter McCoy of Mycologos shares some rpactical ways to encourage fungal growth in the soil.   Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!   Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower. Follow Modern Grower:  Instagram  Instagram Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:  Carrot Cashflow  Farm Small Farm Smart  Farm Small Farm Smart Daily  The Growing Microgreens Podcast  The Urban Farmer Podcast  The Rookie Farmer Podcast  In Search of Soil Podcast Check out Diego's books:  Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon   Ready Farmer One on Amazon **** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

09 29 25 Building and Managing Soil Phosphorus by Ag PhD

In the latest episode of The Peanut Podcast, we traveled to Newsoms, Virginia, where peanut farming isn't just work—it's a way of life. Our guest, Westley Drake, is a 14th-generation peanut farmer whose story blends heritage, faith, and resilience.Westley shared how his earliest memories of farming came from following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. While he once considered firefighting and EMT work, it was his time at NC State that confirmed his calling in agriculture.Listeners got a real look at the sacrifices farming requires—long days, unpredictable weather, and constant challenges. But Westley reminded us that farming is more than a career. It's a year-long commitment to the land and to future generations.We also heard from Westley's wife, Maci, who described her own role in supporting farm life—from chasing cows out of the yard to delivering food to the fields. Together, they've built a family grounded in faith, adaptability, and teamwork.Looking ahead, Westley sees peanut farming staying rooted in tradition while evolving with new tools and technology. His ultimate goal? To keep the farm thriving so his children—and future generations—can choose whether to continue the legacy.As he put it best, farmers like him are “the bridge between the old and the wise and the new and the inexperienced.” Westley is carrying wisdom forward, while preparing space for those who will one day follow in his tracks.

On the Next Black Man Thinkin' with Stanley Levy: 1.    The Current AG Talks Too Much, Too Soon2.    The Soil on which Kirk Fell3.    Erica Kirk, America, Miss on “Forgiveness”4.    Public Assistance is Antithetical to American Greatness5.    How Deep The MLK, Jr. Delusion?

In the Season 6 premiere of Eat Sleep Wine Repeat, Janina is joined by Sunny Hodge, founder of Diogenes the Dog wine bar in London and author of The Cynic's Guide to Wine (use code EATSLEEP15 for 15% off this book and all Academie du Vin books). Known for shaking up traditional wine education, Sunny takes us on a journey into the science behind wine, from rootstocks and yeast strains to soils, sulphites and histamines. This episode dives deep into how low-intervention vs. natural wine is defined, what mouse taint and Brettanomyces really mean for your glass, and why the future of wine chat might balance both the romance of terroir and the hard facts of winemaking. Expect myth-busting, geeky insights, and plenty of food for thought on how wine is grown, made, and enjoyed. If you've ever wondered what truly changes your wine beyond the grape – from organic regulations in the EU vs. USA, to terpenes, esters, and thiols – this is an episode that will transform the way you understand every sip. A quick shout out to this episode's lovely sponsor Viavinum. I've got a special discount code that could earn up 5 or even 8% off your wine tour. Find details at the bottom.* You'll also discover: [05:51] – Why Sunny wrote The Cynic's Guide to Wine: moving beyond storytelling to answer the “whys” and “whats” of wine through science and real understanding. [09:04] – Diogenes the Dog: The Wine Bar in Elephant and Castle, London. [10:04] – Three places to expand your map: Texas (Malbec) from Messina Hof; Weightstone WE White No.4 from Taiwan; an organic project in Eastern Thrace, Turkey with Xavier Vignon. [12:27] – Hybrids/PIWI: bred for heat/humidity resilience to reduce spraying. [14:55] – Janina links her previous episode on Turkish wine for deeper context. [16:38] – The philosophy behind Aspen & Meursault: team training and a dedicated low-intervention concept.   [18:15] – Low-intervention vs natural: how to define these wine terms with no legal definitions.   [21:43] – Sulphur dioxide, alcohol and histamines: why hangovers aren't usually caused by sulphur dioxide — and when histamines might matter.   [27:57] – Organic in Europe vs America: EU allows wines with reduced sulphur dioxide; US organic wine forbids added sulphur dioxide — changing how wines taste and age.   [34:32] – Soil really matters: mycorrhizal “underground internet,” rootstocks, and how they nudge ripening, acidity, and vigor.   [36:52] – From cellar to consumer: why better definitions and transparency help real-world wine choices.   [42:11] – What are thiols? Setting up the chemistry behind those tropical fruit notes.   [45:30] – Feeding vines: getting nitrogen without synthetic fertilisers (and a detour through Fritz Haber's legacy).   [47:32] – Terpenes & esters: aroma families and where they come from   [52:26] – Mouse taint: why it's more common in low-intervention wines and how it shows up.   [56:15] – Brettanomyces: fault or character? Unpacking the sweaty-horse debate.   [57:59] – What's next for Sunny? (Spoiler: more geeky wine chat)   [60:04] – How to contact Sunny and where to buy The Cynic's Guide to Wine – Academie Du Vin Library (Don't forget to use code EATSLEEP15 for 15% of this book and all others on the site)   *VIAVINUM WINE TOURS: If you're dreaming of a wine-filled escape to Italy, I've got something special for you. Book a customized wine tour of more than 6 days / 5 nights through my trusted travel partners and use my code EATSLEEPWINE to unlock an exclusive discount: 5% off for private groups of 2 to 5 people 8% off for groups of 6 or more Right now, the full range of private tours isn't live on the website as they're being refreshed for the new season — but if you're ready to plan something unforgettable, this is the perfect time to design your own bespoke wine adventure.

Eph. 2

In this sermon, we continued our marriage series using the metaphor of a garden to explore the unique design and roles of husbands and wives. Drawing from Ephesians 5:22-24, we examined how men and women are created differently—physically, emotionally, and spiritually—and how these differences are not flaws but intentional aspects of God's design. The sermon addressed the cultural push to erase gender distinctions and emphasized that true partnership in marriage comes from embracing our God-given roles, not from competing or conforming to societal trends. We discussed the biblical concepts of headship and submission, clarifying that these are not about superiority or inferiority, but about order, responsibility, and mutual sanctification. The call was for men to lead with Christlike servant leadership and for women to support and challenge their husbands toward godliness, all within the context of grace, humility, and dependence on Jesus.

Qu'est-ce que vous admirez ? La question, en apparence innocente, touche à l'intime. Qu'il s'agisse de personnes, de phénomènes naturels ou bien d'œuvres d'art, ce sentiment nous bouleverse profondément. Qu'est-ce qu'il se passe en nous quand on admire ? Pourquoi est-ce que ça nous plonge dans un état émotionnel si fort ? Et comment est-ce que cela nous transforme ?Dans cet épisode, Marie Misset explore les bienfaits de ce sentiment avec la philosophe Joëlle Zask, autrice d'Admirer, éloge d'un sentiment qui nous fait grandir. Avec les témoignages d'Alex, Charly, Fanny*, Sarah, Colline et David.*le prénom a été modifiéPour aller plus loin :L'étude de Marcus Raichle A default mode of brain function puis de Randy Buckner et Jessica Andrews-Hanna, The brain's default network : anatomy, function, and relevance to disease sur le réseau du “mode par défaut”Le livre du sociologue français, Alain Ehrenberg, La fatigue d'être soiL'étude de Gabriel Tarde, Les lois de l'imitationLe travail de Stefania Rousselle, sur InstagramLe livre de Bernard Werber, Les fourmisLa chanson Stan de EminemLa chanson La groupie du pianiste de Michel BergerLa chanson Bobby Jean de Bruce SpringsteenÉmotions est un podcast de Louie Media. Marie Misset a tourné, écrit et monté cet épisode. La réalisation sonore est de Renaud Watine. Elsa Berthault est en charge de la production. Si vous aussi vous voulez nous raconter votre histoire dans Émotions, écrivez-nous en remplissant ce formulaire ou à l'adresse hello@louiemedia.comPour avoir des news de Louie, des recos podcasts et culturelles, abonnez-vous à notre newsletter en cliquant ici. Vous souhaitez soutenir la création et la diffusion des projets de Louie Media ? Vous pouvez le faire via le Club Louie. Chaque participation est précieuse. Nous vous proposons un soutien sans engagement, annulable à tout moment, soit en une seule fois, soit de manière régulière. Au nom de toute l'équipe de Louie : MERCI ! Hébergé par Acast. Visitez acast.com/privacy pour plus d'informations.

Today on the Buck Junkies podcast, we're talkin' all about our recent trip to West Point Mississippi for the Foxhole shootout and covering EVERYTHING you need to know about getting those cold season plots ready to go!.... Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 00:17 - Welcome to the show Colin! 02:32 - Foxhole shootout recap 09:42 - How to fix basket rack 8-points on your land 17:37 - Chef Michael Hunters' wild hog recipes 20:26 - The BEST dishes we had at the Foxhole shootout 23:23 - Workin' at Pizza hut for free.... 26:06 - What seeds should you plant for your Fall Plots? 32:25 - When should you be planting your field? 39:09 - If you're planting early, what should it be? 43:53 - Equipment for planting fall plots 52:12 - What can you do to create an annual plot on a budget? 1:03:23 - When your fields are lookin' rough, what do you do? 1:06:05 - If you're starting a field, here's some tips  1:08:50 - How important is a soil test? 1:16:32 - Closing Notes

No-till gardening improves soil health and plant strength but brings new challenges with weed control Perennial weeds like bindweed and thistle need long-term strategies such as tarping to starve out their underground root systems Fast-growing annual weeds spread quickly by seed, making early removal essential to prevent future infestations Cover crops such as rye, oats, and wheat naturally block sunlight and suppress weeds while feeding your soil Mulching with straw, wood chips, or crop residue shields the soil, stops weed seeds from sprouting, and builds long-term fertility

Food Tank is live all week at WNYC-NPR's The Greene Space running food and agriculture programming at Climate Week NYC with over 300 speakers, 60 performers, and 15 events. Watch these conversations live on Food Tank's YouTube channel, or by visiting FoodTank.com. While you are on our website please also become a Food Tank member to ensure programming like this continues. This episode takes you to our summit Regenerative Food Systems: Scaling Impact from Soil to Shelf, in partnership with Arva and Kiss the Ground. Our first conversation features David Moscow (actor, producer, From Scratch) where he reflects on storytelling, farming, and food systems. Then, Dani sits down with Sam Kass (Acre Venture Partners, former White House) to discuss food, policy, and impact. While you're listening, subscribe, rate, and review the show; it would mean the world to us to have your feedback. You can listen to “Food Talk with Dani Nierenberg” wherever you consume your podcasts.

Richard Tufton and Claire Mackenzie of the Six Inches of Soil Podcast generously shared with me a conversation they hosted between Gabe Brown and Dr. Temple Grandin. This is a fascinating conversation that covers Dr. Temple Grandin's perspective on regenerative agriculture and some of her solutions to the fragility in our food system. We get some great back and forth between Gabe and Dr. Grandin. Thanks again to Richard and Claire for sharing this conversation!Thanks to our Studio Sponsor, Understanding Ag!Head over to UnderstandingAg.com to book your consultation today!Sponsor:UnderstandingAg.comRelevant Links:Dr. Temple GrandinSubscribe to the Six Inches of Soil Podcast:Gabe Brown's Previous Episodes:Ep. 404 Gabe Brown and Dr. Allen Williams on Fixing America's Broken Rural EconomiesEp. 402 Gabe Brown and Dr. Allen Williams – Fixing America's Broken Water CycleEp. 380 Gabe Brown, Dr. Allen Williams, and Fernando Falomir – Soil Health Academy Q and AEp. 388 Gabe Brown and Luke Jones – Making the Regenerative ShiftEp. 361 Gabe Brown and Allen Williams – 2024 State of AgricultureEp. 305 Gabe Brown and Dr. Allen Williams – Matching Management to ContextEp. 293 Gabe Brown and Matt McGinn – Transitioning to More Adaptive StewardshipEp. 290 Gabe Brown and Dr. Allen Williams – Three Rules of Adaptive StewardshipEp. 288 Gabe Brown and Shane New – Managing the Nutrient CyleEp. 283 Gabe Brown and Dr. Allen Williams – The 6-3-4Ep. 281 Gabe Brown and Dr. Allen Williams – The State of Agriculture in North AmericaEp. 277 Gabe Brown – The State of the American Food SystemEp. 121 Gabe Brown – Heifer Development in Sync with NatureEp. 067 Gabe Brown – Dirt to SoilMore Info About Six Inches of Soil:Six Inches of Soil Podcast, Episode 8:Unbound: discovering unlimited potential when what's better for cattle is better for businessHost, producer: Richard TuftonCo-host, producer: Claire MackenzieSix Inches of Soil: Website: https://www.sixinchesofsoil.org/Book: https://www.sixinchesofsoil.org/bookInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/sixinchesofsoil/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/six-inches-of-soil-b75059234/Introduction:Dr Grandin and Gabe explore how uniting animal welfare with regenerative agriculture and combining soil practices with Temple's farming solutions, you have nature and nurture working together as one big metaphorical “hug machine”. This offers a communal hug, if you will, by enveloping the animal's life with a safe, healthy, happy and tranquil environment, which we know will undoubtedly provide a better life for them. Their conversations weave between regenerative agriculture, animal welfare, and consumer demand. The speakers discuss the importance of integrating livestock with crops, the challenges faced in modern agriculture, and the role of youth in shaping the future of farming. They emphasize the need for visual thinking and innovation in agricultural practices, as well as the impact of climate change on food production. Featuring: Dr Temple Grandin is an American scientist and industrial designer whose own experience with autism funded her professional work in creating systems to counter stress in certain human and animal populations.Dr. Grandin did not talk until she was three and a half years old. She was fortunate to get early speech therapy. Her teachers also taught her how to wait and take turns when playing board games. She was mainstreamed into a normal kindergarten at age five. Dr. Grandin became a prominent author and speaker on both autism and animal behavior. Today she is a professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University. She also has a successful career consulting on both livestock handling equipment design and animal welfare. She has been featured on NPR (National Public Radio) and a BBC Special – "The Woman Who Thinks Like a Cow". HBO made an Emmy Award winning movie about her life and she was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2016.Gabe BrownGabe Brown is one of the pioneers of the current soil health movement which focuses on the regeneration of our resources. Gabe, along with his wife Shelly, and son Paul, ran Brown's Ranch, a diversified 5,000 acre farm and ranch near Bismarck, North Dakota. Their ranch focuses on farming and ranching in nature's image.They have now transitioned ownership of the ranch over to their son, Paul and his wife, Jazmin.Gabe authored the bestselling book, “Dirt to Soil, One Family's Journey Into Regenerative Agriculture.”Gabe is a partner and Board Member at Regenified and serves as the public face of the company. He is a founding partner in Understanding Ag, LLC.Websites: https://brownsranch.us/https://regenified.com/about-us/https://understandingag.com/partners/gabe-brown/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brownsranch/?hl=en

In this insightful episode of The Reformed Brotherhood, hosts Tony Arsenal and Jesse Schwamb begin their series on Jesus's parables by examining the Parable of the Sower (or Soils). This foundational teaching from Christ reveals why some hearts receive the gospel message while others reject it. The hosts unpack the four soil types Jesus describes, exploring what each represents spiritually and how these patterns continue to manifest today. They emphasize that while the parable reveals different responses to the gospel, it also provides comfort for believers engaged in evangelism, reminding us that outcomes ultimately depend not on the sower's skill but on the condition of the soil—a condition that only God can prepare. This episode offers both theological depth and practical encouragement for Christians seeking to understand the various responses to the gospel message in their own ministry contexts. Key Takeaways The Parable of the Sower serves as a hermeneutical key for understanding all of Jesus's parables, as it directly addresses why Jesus taught in parables and provides the interpretive framework for understanding their purpose. The parable reveals four types of responses to the gospel (represented by the four soils), but only one that leads to genuine salvation and fruit-bearing. The focus of the parable is not on the sower's skill or the seed's quality but on the condition of the soil—emphasizing God's sovereignty in salvation while encouraging continued evangelism. The "rocky ground" hearers represent those who initially receive the gospel with joy but have no root system to sustain them when trials come, often resulting in what we might call "deconstruction" today. Christians should expect varied responses to gospel proclamation and not be discouraged when the seed appears to be wasted on unresponsive hearts, as this pattern was predicted by Jesus himself. The parable provides a warning against shallow faith while encouraging believers to develop deep spiritual roots that can withstand persecution and trials. Genuine conversion is ultimately evidenced by fruit-bearing, not merely by initial enthusiasm or religious affiliation. Understanding the Soils The Parable of the Sower presents four distinct soil types, each representing different responses to the gospel message. The first soil—the path—represents hearts where the gospel makes no impact whatsoever; the seed simply bounces off and is quickly snatched away by Satan. This illustrates not merely outward rejection of the gospel, but also intellectual non-comprehension. As Tony explains, this doesn't necessarily mean active hostility toward the gospel but could simply be indifference: "It may not be someone who has like a closed fist, 'I hate the gospel, I hate everything about God,' but for some reason they're just not [interested]." This parallels Paul's teaching in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that "the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him." The rocky soil represents those who initially receive the gospel with enthusiasm but lack depth. Their faith appears genuine at first but quickly withers under pressure or persecution. This phenomenon is particularly evident in what we often call "deconstruction" today—where someone who appeared genuinely converted falls away when their faith is tested. As Jesse notes, "I think what I've been helpful for me is to get outta my mind...what's the length of time here? Is it possible that somebody could be in this place...which presents like a setting down of deep roots that could last like years on end?" The parable reminds us that immediate joy at receiving the gospel is not necessarily evidence of saving faith, and it calls us to examine whether our own faith has sufficient depth to withstand trials. The Comfort of Realistic Expectations One of the most encouraging aspects of this parable is how it calibrates our expectations about evangelism and gospel ministry. Jesus teaches that when the gospel is proclaimed, we should expect varied responses—including outright rejection—not because of any failure in the message or messenger, but because of the condition of human hearts. This provides tremendous comfort for believers engaged in evangelistic efforts who might otherwise be discouraged by apparent failure. Tony highlights this point: "This parable is not about the skill of the sower or even the efficacy of the seed...The point of the parable...is that it has to do with the soil itself." This understanding frees us from the pressure of thinking we must somehow perfect our evangelistic technique or presentation, while also removing the false guilt that can come when people reject the message we share. Furthermore, the parable encourages continued, generous sowing of the gospel seed. As Tony observes, "We don't see the sower in this parable meticulously only identifying the good soil and only planting the seeds there. He does promiscuously spread this seed everywhere that he can." This reminds us that our responsibility is faithful proclamation, while the results remain in God's sovereign hands. Memorable Quotes "The Parable of the Sower teaches really that the gospel call goes out to all... but only those who God regenerates, that good soil, are gonna receive it savingly and will bear fruit." - Jesse Schwamb "Just because our experience of Christianity and our experience of being in the faith feels so genuine and real and rooted, we should also recognize that it felt real and genuine and rooted for [those who later fell away]... There's a caution there for us." - Tony Arsenal "The exhortation built into this is that we need to seek that root. We don't get to determine what kind of soil we are on an ultimate level—that's God's election and his secret providence. But on a horizontal level, in our experience of things, we have agency, we make decisions. We seek to be rooted or unrooted in the gospel." - Tony Arsenal Full Transcript [00:00:36] Introduction and Greetings Jesse Schwamb: Welcome to episode 462 of The Reformed Brotherhood. I am Jesse. Tony Arsenal: And I'm Tony. And this is the podcast of Good Soil. Hey brother. Jesse Schwamb: Hey brother. Well, will you look at us? Look at us. It's finally and officially begun. And that is this conversation. [00:01:00] Kickoff to the Parable Series Jesse Schwamb: This episode is really the kickoff, well, the first parable that we're going through together, starting a long conversation that I think is gonna bear much fruit, if you will. Yes. Maybe 30, maybe 60, maybe a hundred times. Lord willing. It's gonna be great. And we're starting off with a doozy. Yes. Actually, maybe this is like the granddaddy of all the parables because we're gonna hear Jesus tell us something about the word of God and how it's received among different hearers. And this is so fantastic. It's the only place to begin because this is truly some eternally contemporary words. Yeah, it's, this is the parable that's continually verified under our own eyes. Wherever the word of God is preached or expounded and people are assembled to hear it, the sayings of our Lord in this parable are found to be true. It describes what goes on as a general rule in our congregations in the world. Anytime the word of God goes out, what a place to begin. So we're gonna get there. It's gonna be great, don't you worry, dear listener. [00:02:04] Affirmations and Denials Jesse Schwamb: But of course, before we do that, it's our tradition, our word that's spoken is always something in affirmation with something or in denial against something. So I say to you, as I always do, Tony. What do you have for us on this episode? Uh, an affirmation or denial. Tony Arsenal: This is an affirmation. I'll try to keep it nice and short and tight. Uh, I am affirming everything that comes with the fall. It's the air's getting crisp. The season, the, the pumpkin. Yeah. Not, not the fall. With the, let's, let's, let's clarify. I'm affirming everything that comes with autumn. So, uh, the air's crisp, the pumpkin spice is flowing, the leaves are starting to come down. Although, as a New Englander, I feel like I might be a little disappointed this year they're saying that it might not be as vibrant because we've been under a bit of a drought. But, uh, I, I'm all for all of it. Sweaters, gimme like a nice cozy scarf to put on and like a, I don't know, like a stocking cap. Gimme some flannel. I'm just ready to rock and roll. I'm, I'm, I'm done with summer and I'm ready for fall and yeah, that's, that's the whole thing. That's the affirmation. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. [00:03:09] Autumnal Delights and Debates Jesse Schwamb: Beautiful. It's speaking of like eternally or seasonally contemporary. That is so good. Plus I would say like the fall or autumn. The best adjectives, doesn't it? Yes. Like including like the word ottum. Yes. Like, that's just a great word that we, we do not use enough of. So this season, loved ones dropping a tum in there because Yes. It's just such a good word. Tony Arsenal: And I, I know people hate on the pumpkin spice and uh, there was a rev, I think I've said this before, it's re revolutionized my understanding because I used to get so mad because I was like, this doesn't even taste like pumpkin. It's not pumpkin flavored items, it's pumpkin spiced. Flavored items. So it's the, the spice you would use in pumpkin pie is the spice that they're talking about. So people complain that you're just putting nutmeg in things. And to that, I say yes, that's the point. You just start adding nutmeg or pumpkin spice or cloves or all spice or whatever it might be. The point is we're using the same spices that you would use for making a pumpkin pie or some other sort of fall. Delicious fall. Pumpy squashy, goodness. Jesse Schwamb: You got that right. This is a classic case of don't hate the player. Hate the game. Tony Arsenal: It's true, it's true. And if you don't like it, if you don't like pumpkin spice, then just don't talk to me at all. I'm just kidding. Still get pumpkin spice. Like you can go to Starbucks and get the same, same coffee you always get. You don't have to get pumpkin spice, you don't have to drink pumpkin beer, you don't have to do any of that. The all the stuff is, all the normal stuff is still available. They don't tell you you can't have it. Nobody is opening your mouth and pouring it down your throat. So just calm down, order your normal drip coffee and move on with your life. Jesse Schwamb: Speaking of polarizing autumnal type things, I don't know if we've talked about probably, we have talked about this and I've just forgotten. Where do you land on the whole. Cotton, uh, sorry. Candy corn, not cotton candy, but candy corn. Tony Arsenal: I, I feel like we have talked about this and my perspectives may have changed over the years. I'm not a big fan of candy corn, but I will eat it until I vomit. If you put it in front, I think is the, is the consensus that if there's a bowl of it in front of me, the first thing that I will do is I will break off two little white tips of the ca uh, candy corn and stick them on my fangs and pretend to be vampire. Jesse Schwamb: Beautiful. Tony Arsenal: And then I will eat the remainder of the pound and a half of candy that's in front of me until I throw up. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. And I know there's some difference between like candy, corn and like the little pumpkin confectionary ones. Yeah. Some people prefer those over others. And then this is not even to talk about the whole debate between when it comes to Reese's Peanut butter cups and Oh yeah. The pumpkin variety of those and No, all that stuff. Tony Arsenal: No. Mm. Jesse Schwamb: No. To those? Tony Arsenal: No, to those. The, the shaped, the shaped, uh, Reese's Peanut butter objects, I suppose they're not cups at that point. Uh, they use a different kind of peanut butter. I dunno if you know that, but they use a different peanut butter. So they, they actually do taste different than the actual didn't know that says peanut butter cups. Um, it's either a different kind of peanut butter or a different kind of chocolate. But one of the primary substances, uh, not in the Aristotelian sense, uh, one of the primary substances is different. And so it does actually taste different. It's not as good. And then the balance between the chocolate and the peanut butter is off. It's, it's not good. I'm a, I'm a peanut butter cup. Uh, I like to say aficionado, but I think probably snob would be a better. A better term for it. Jesse Schwamb: Listen, you'll, you like what you like by the way, only on this podcast, only, I think among long-term listeners, would it be necessary to clarify that you do not mean substance in there was six alien sense. Tony Arsenal: That's true. That's, that's definitely true. Well, Jesse, that is where we are. Enough about my, uh, fall. Uh, food preferences. What are you affirming and or denying? Tonight, [00:07:02] Musical Recommendations Jesse Schwamb: I'm gonna also come along with you on it with the affirmation, and maybe while you're drinking that PSL or you're searching for that candy, corn, you might like, want something to put into your ears that isn't us, that's a little bit more melodic. And so I'm affirming with the, this time and age in which it is all about curation. That's often a lovely thing. I use Spotify for all of my music consumption, and they just fed me like a really interesting playlist that I would never have thought of as a category, but I've really been enjoying, it's called Math Rock. And I saw, and I thought I'm, I'm usually kinda like dubious of the Spotify playlist because like they're kind of out there for me generally. But I thought to myself, well, this is an interesting port man too. Like, I like math. I like rock, and the description was complex rhythms and mesmerizing loops. So I thought, I like complex rhythms. I like loops that continue and mesmerize, so the check it out for yourself. If you're looking for something that's like, it's enough to be interesting while you're working on something, but not too interesting. So that distracts you. This is apparently the jam. So yeah, it's like just really interesting rock oriented, mostly instrumental music that is like. Really motivating, but again, not interesting enough to really distract you from the task at hand if that's not your thing. The other thing I would recommend, I know you'll join me in this, Tony, is that poor Bishop Hooper released a new album this week. It's called The Serpent and the Seed, and this one has a ton of tracks on it, like 18 or so, and it, it as well is a unique mix of both instrumental, really lovely, beautiful pieces and then some that carry more vocal and melodic stuff that's kind of their customary jam. Both of 'em are great. They both do have kind of an an autumnal vibe, if I'm honest. Now I'm thinking about it. It's really the perfect compliment to whatever it is that you're consuming that has that pumpkin spice in it. So math, rock, the serpent and the seed. There you go. Tony Arsenal: I'm trying to synthesize. I mean, math and rock are like two of Jesse's favorite things. So I'm trying to synthesize what it would be like to scream the quadratic equation at someone with some sort of like slightly off cadence, dissonant guitar rift underneath. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. Tony Arsenal: I feel like there's a Me Without You album out there somewhere that that's exactly what it is. But Jesse Schwamb: yeah, probably there should Tony Arsenal: be at least. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, there, there absolutely should be. And I'm with you. I'm willing to work on that album. That's a great idea. Like just, it's just an album of mathematical equations and like the deep mysteries of life, you know, listen, math is beautiful. Numbers are stories. There's, there's so much there. Yeah. You had me at Quadratic, so I, I think we've, we've given people a lot to enjoy in this fall season. It's true. Tony Arsenal: I, I. I couldn't solve a quadratic equation to save my entire life at this point. Uh, I took introduction to logic when I got to college 'cause I couldn't remember how to multiply fractions on the entrance exam. That's fair. So that's fair. So that was, that's my experience with math. But right Jesse Schwamb: now the internet wants to keep serving me videos about, you've seen like all these tests, like these entrance exams for like Harvard or like the Ivy Leagues, other Ivy Leagues, and it is all these random things, you know, like we're solving for like two variables, terminally, and there is some kinda like expon explanation to it. Um. Yeah, I guess that's what I've become and I watch 'em all. They honestly get me every time. Yeah. I'm like, I'm not gonna watch that. And then I'm like, oh, I'm definitely gonna watch that. So it just happens. It's great. Tony Arsenal: I love it. Meanwhile, meanwhile, YouTube is desperately trying to get me to watch Season six and Cobra High. And it's very quickly gonna be succeeding. I think the next time Netflix has a, has a promotion where I can get a cheap month or something like that, I will definitely be binging Cobra Kai. So I feel like our YouTube algorithms are very different. Jesse Schwamb: Very different. Yeah. Very different. Certainly in, um, there is a commonality of, of the mysteries of the world and. [00:11:06] Introduction to the Parable of the Sower Jesse Schwamb: In some way, that's what we're talking about in this entire series. And yeah, if for some reason you didn't hear a conversation from two weeks ago where we really set the table, I think for what a parable is, why Jesus uses parables. As far as I remember, you correct if I'm wrong, it was the definitive conversation about why the parable is not just peace wise in Jesus' teaching, but really why it's the centerpiece. Yeah, we talked about that at great length. So now we're really ready to go. If you didn't hear that, I highly recommend you go back and hear that. 'cause there's so much. I realize as we, we looked at this parable of the sower or better like the parable of the soils, that we could do a whole series on just this bad boy. Such not just like wide interpretation, but wide application. So much for us to really chew on and then to really come back to and chew the could. So we're gonna have to be probably every time a little bit self-editing and brief. So if you're just yelling at your device, why aren't you talking about this thing? There's a great place for you to yell into or maybe just calmly and very politely suggest rather than the void, you can join our Telegram group. Telegram is just an app for, it's kind of a conversational tool and platform, and if you're looking for it and I know that you are, don't, why would you even fool yourself? It's, you can find it by going to T Me Reform Brotherhood. There's a whole channel, there's a bunch of channels there, a bunch of little conversations that we have compartmentalize. There's one just to talk about the episode. So as we go through this, my encouragement to everybody is track with us, get your scriptures out. Come along with us in the actual journey of processing this. Do spend some time processing it with us. And then when there is inevitably that thing, they're like, why didn't you talk about this? You know, a great place to converse with others and us about that would be in the Telegram Chat. So T Me Reform Brotherhood. So enough of that, let's get to it. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. And you know, there's, there's some, um, there's some logic that would say we should have just rather than doing an Introduction to Parables episode, we should have just done the parable, because this parable does really follow, it really does form like an introduction to all of Christ's parabolic teachings. And, you know, it's, no, it's no, um, mystery either in God's providence or just in Matthew as being a, a, you know, somewhat genius level composer of, of a work of literature in putting this parable first, because you're absolutely right at the top of the show that this parable really is. Almost like the hermeneutical key for all of the parables. Not just for in terms of like understanding the parables, it doesn't do that so much. But in understanding the purpose of the parables and more importantly, explicitly in the middle of this, Christ explains why he teaches in parables. So we covered that a lot last time, so we're not gonna, we're gonna skip over that middle section 'cause we don't need to rehash that. But this really is the granddaddy of all the parables. It it is, um. It is Christ's teaching on why he uses parables in action. It's the application of his own theology, of parables, if you want to call it that. Uh, in principle. And he is gracious enough that in this very first parable, he actually gives us the interpretation, right, which is, is not entirely unique, um, in, in the gospels, but it is not always the norm. There are a fair number of parables where Christ just drops the parable and leaves it there, um, for both his immediate listeners to figure out and then also for us to figure out. We're not given the inspired interpretation, but this one we are given the inspired interpretation. And Jesse, I had to laugh because, um. Just as you get really, really upset and worked, worked up about when people say Christ's body broken for you. Uh, it just drives me nuts when people call this the parable of the soils. 'cause Christ gives it a name, right? So, so we'll talk about that too. And I, I'm, I'm mostly playing, like, I'm not gonna jump through the screen at you or anything like that, but that's the, one of the other unique features of this parable is that it's given it's, it's given a name. Um, and that's part of the interpretation is that in most cases, parables have a primary figure or a primary point that's being made. And if you get that primary point wrong or that primary figure wrong, um, you tend to get the rest of the parable wrong. In this case, Christ graciously tells us who the parable is about or what the parable is about, and then later on when we get to the, the next parable or a couple parables down, um, he actually tells us more about the parable through some other teaching as well. [00:15:38] Reading and Analyzing the Parable Tony Arsenal: So, Jesse, do you have that text in front of us? Do you wanna go ahead and read that first chunk? That's the parable itself. Jesse Schwamb: I do, let's do it by the way. Uh, maybe somebody should keep track. Here's a fun little game of how many times we say parable or parabolic. And of course, whenever I hear parabolic, I always think, of course there is like something of great hyperbole or allegory, but I often think of, uh, parabola, which to your point, Tony, I think you're just doing this for my sake now, and I love, this is an exponent oriented equation. Of course, it's a like a canonical section, which can only be creative mathematically by pronunciation again. So thank you for that. I thought you just did that for me, so Tony Arsenal: I have no idea what you just said. You might as well have been speaking like Hindu. Jesse Schwamb: It's fantastic. Well, let's, let's get to the actual, the best word, the word of life. And this is from Matthew chapter 13. Beginning just at the start of the chapter. That same day, Jesus went out of his, uh, house and sat beside the sea and, and great crowds gathered about him so that he got into a boat and sat down and the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables saying. A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprung up since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched. And since they had no roots, they were it away. Other seeds fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain. Some a hundred fold, some 60, some 30. He who has ears, let him hear. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. So on a surface level here, the, the parable is straightforward, right? We have a very straightforward picture, which is, is common for most of the parables, that it's not some sort of unusual, crazy out there situation that's being described. It's a common scenario from everyday life, uh, that doesn't tend to have sort of like. Mythological legendary kinds of characteristics. We have a simple farmer who is out sowing his seeds. Um, some of the commentaries we'll point out, and I don't, I dunno how accurate this is or isn't, but I, I saw it in, in a couple different commentaries. So I'm inclined to, to believe it that our model of farming, uh, in sort of a western world or, or maybe not western world, but in a more, I dunno, technologically advanced world, is to teal the ground till the ground first, Jesse Schwamb: right? Tony Arsenal: And then to scatter seed. And it was much more common in the ancient world to actually scatter the seed kind of, uh, promiscuously and then till the ground. Um, I don't know the reasons for that. I'm not a horticulturist, but, um. The, the, one of the critiques that I've heard, and it's funny when people try to critique Jesus is 'cause they're always proven wrong, but one of the critiques I've heard is like, no farmer whatever would ever do this. Like, no, no sower would ever just throw seed on the ground, but this actually is the way they would've done farming. So he's, he's taking an everyday scenario that everyone would've been familiar with. Right. Nobody would've been like, oh yeah, that doesn't make any sense. They would've just said, oh yeah, of course you just throw the seed on the ground and then you come back around later and you do what you need to do. So it, it was really a scenario where some of the seed would've fallen on the path. And we're not talking about like a road next to the farm, but a lot of times the, the field had sort of, um. They're probably called like convenience trails is what they're called now. But people would travel through the, through the paths, and so there would be an area that's already walked, walked on that's a little bit easier to traverse. And eventually that area would turn into a pathway. So it was, it was kind of turned into sort of like hard clay turf that you couldn't get the seed into anyways. And then there would've been areas where, um, there was rocks under the surface. Most of our fields that our farm fields have been tilled and prepared and have been worked over, that the stones had been removed. But it wasn't always like that in the ancient world. And then you would've had areas where there was, uh, there was other vegetation, thorns, weeds, other kinds of plants that would've made, made it difficult for the crop to sprout and to bear fruit. So we have a very common scenario. There's nothing surprising about this. There's nothing out of the ordinary. It's just a simple farming metaphor that Christ employs here. Jesse Schwamb: And in some ways that's very consistent of course, because we have these very ordinary, normal things that God is using as a means of explanation for something that is very extraordinary, very supernatural. So we have the natural coming into play, not just as a representation, but to really demonstrates, illustrates and impound both in structure and form. This idea of what it means for the gospel to be communicated. And I'm with you, my understanding is in most ancient world. Those, those fields, we tend to think of them as fields and often the reference that way were like more like these narrow strips of land separated by these paths and you have this farmer casting the seed like very liberally. And not only that, but I think what's interesting right on the face. Is we see that there are basically four potential outcomes here and only one of those outcomes, 'cause we're already understanding this to mean the sowing of the sea, which is the word of life, which is the gospel message. Only one of those outcomes results in kingdom growth. There's a ratio of three to one. There's three times as many poor outcomes. In other words, there's all of these various ways in which we find that the seed is not rejected or does not result in the intended fruit. But there is just one path, one narrow kind of way in which it does result, and then it results in kind of various outcomes in terms of like the magnitude of the fruit or the plants that result from this planting. But as a result of that. I think what's really interesting to me right on the face is that we're seeing, like you said, there is a sower. He's casting the seed deliberately, he's coming on the path and he's just throwing it out. And in that narrow strip of land, there are all these different soils. And so right away we see if you're, if you're a farmer, you're understanding something about, it's not about the skill of the farmer in the casting of the seed. It's not even about the, the skill of the seed to grow. It's about the soil itself. And so again, we have this as three times as many potentially poor outcomes as there are for the one that results in this grand harvest. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. And the one thing about this that might be, might have been, and, and again, some of the commentators are, are split on this, but might have been a sort of unexpected, um, element. And, and this is something we do see with, uh, with the parables, is there's usually some sort of, um. Unexpected or dramatic or turn of events kind of element, usually towards the end of a parable that would make, would, should be a subversion of expectations. Right? Right. And so the, in this instance, um, a yield of 30 times or, or 60 times or a hundred times, all of those yields would be crazy high yields. Um, you know, I, I, I think there are some plants, some of the commentators will make, make a point that there are some plants where like a 30. A 30 yield is normal. Um, but a 30 or a 60 or a hundred times yield of a crop is, is not the expectation. And so I think in, in a scenario like this, the reader or the listener is prepped by the fact that there are three, uh, negative outcomes and only one favorable outcome. To assume that the crop yield is not going to be great. Right? And then the reality is the crops that do sprout the crops that land on the good soil or the seed that lands on the good soil. Not only is it productive, it's so productive that it actually outpaces and kind of compensates for the lack of productivity or the lack of fruitfulness of the other three. So it's, it's three different, uh, it's four possible outcomes and then three levels of fruitfulness. And so this parable does sort of cause the listener or the hearer to think about, um, and start, you know, from the very outset, think about what does, what does it mean that the seed landed on the path and was stolen away by the birds? What does it mean that it sprouted quickly and uh, but didn't have roots and so it withered away in the sun? And what does it mean that, you know, it sprouted among thorns and so it couldn't bear fruit. And then I think the implied, um, the implied question that's being forced here because the parable does start out, you know, saying there was the sower, the sower, um. Sowed this seed out. He doesn't introduce this the same way he normally, he normally does or commonly does, right? Jesus often will start the peril ball by saying something like, the kingdom of God is like, right? Or you know this. This is like that. This, he just starts out saying like, a sower was out in the, in the field sowing seed. So the, the listener is not primed to know what the comparison is necessarily, but I think part of that is that now they're forced to ask what is the comparison? And I don't think it's much of a stretch. And again, this is why parables are so kind of paradoxical is it's not a difficult, when we get to the interpretation, it's not difficult to see the interpretation. Right, right. It's, it's easy to understand that the parable here, the metaphor is, is different reactions of, of some sort to. To a given thing, right? It's, it's different reactions to an investment of some sort. There's an investment of seed and in some instances it just doesn't take, in other instances, it takes and it doesn't sprout, and in other instances it sprouts, but it never fruits. So when we get to the interpretation, Jesus is gonna give us the clarity of what that investment is, and then who are, or what are the outcomes and what do they mean? In, in our, you know, in our thought process of what the kingdom of God is like. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, so let's do it then. [00:25:44] Understanding the Soils Jesse Schwamb: 'cause what we've got here is we basically have, each soil is representing some type of here. So we've got four heres but only one true believer. So it's probably behooves us to go through all of them and really kind of chat through. And maybe what we can do is try to bring some of our own practical application to each of these. I've been really meditating and pondering that, trying to think if this is practical for us, then how can we understand how each of these are being manifest all around us? And of course the intention here is not to like name people that we think fall into each of these four little groups, but more so to think about how we might understand people who do fall into each of these groups. And that is to say that. Each one of these, well, the, the first three rather, that these ones in which they're, the soil is in some degree suboptimal. I, I don't know that it means that it's always that way, for instance. So we might think of people that fall into those categories, but the Lord may be moving or working in them to move them into that fourth category. And of course, he's done that with ourselves, so we know that that's exactly how he operates. Um, and it's, I think it's good for us to remember that. I think there's a lot that's scary about this first soil, this idea that. The seed just bounces. So we get no uptake whatsoever in this one. But the other ones, at least you get a little satisfaction that there's some kind of reception. There is a receipt of that word. And the reason why I find this one to be so troubling is because these who hear it in the first case, they don't understand and they don't esteem it. And Christ is very clear to say that the seed itself doesn't sit there long. It bounces. So there's a, there is a literal hardness. That's reflected in that clay soil or that path, which is down trotted. And it's hard because of perhaps this constant lack of belief, this constant and unrepentant hearts or lifestyle, but it would be enough if it just kinda bounced off and sat there. But the fact that it's snatched away that the birds come and take it away, that Satan himself has an active and powerful role in influencing all of those who are hearing this word. And I think that hardness of heart may not just be manifest in, say, like an unrepentant lifestyle or this kind of clench fist against God on the inside, which is of course true of the natural man. But more than that, that anything that would take us away from true belief. So that is even any kind of our religious system or belief, any kind of philosophy, any kind of other worldview I think is in mind here because we know the devil comes to kill, steal, and destroy. And so. What he's doing in that sometimes happens first and foremost in the mind, manifested in the heart and then in our behaviors. So if he's stealing away this word by replacing it with something that is false, that is not true, that destroys, that pulls us away and moves us away, then this is very scary. He has a real power, which we talked about. I don't know, like maybe six or so episodes ago. It's worth listening to, I think. And so what I find here that is really traumatizing upfront is the involvement in particular of the sinful man under his own mean estate. That is, that it's clear that the natural man cannot conceive of the things of God without regeneration, and Jesus makes it abundantly clear. He's, he's basically saying what Paul says later on in First Corinthians when he writes, the natural person does not accept the things of the spirit of God, does not accept them. So again, there's no agreement. There's no, even an intellectual ascent does not accept the things of the spirit of God for they are folly to him and he's not able to understand them because they're spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one for who is understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him. But we have the mind of Christ, so there is no mind of Christ, which is, it's a horrible way to live life. And so in that space we have both the natural man, his total depravity, unable to pull himself up by his theological bootstraps or philosophical bootstraps or his intellectual emotional bootstraps to even discern what the way in which the world really actually is. And then in in, I say in addition to that, we have the devil himself waging war and attacking by pulling away that seed. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. And I have a little bit of a different take on this and I think this is what I am looking forward to in this series. Is there, there is gonna be. [00:30:01] Understanding the Parable of the Sower Tony Arsenal: Different, uh, different understandings that probably all fall and are all compatible, but all fall within a acceptable range of understanding. Here, you know, I, in, in reading some of the commentaries, Calvin makes the point that all four of these different types of seed represent people who in some sense are open to the gospel. They're, they're open to, he, he makes the point that this is not talking about the, the person who like refuses to hear the gospel at all, who like won't even come into the church. This is a person predominantly who is, is exposed to the word in some sense, probably in view as someone who's among the people of God who's in the, in the, in the physical body of the people of God who's among Christians or among those hearing the word. And for whatever reason, the, the, the seed doesn't, uh, it doesn't even get into the soil. Right, and he compares, Christ compares, um, this not to somebody who is hardhearted, but to someone who doesn't understand, right? That there's an intellectual element to this, right? You think of, um, you know, you think of somebody who hears the scripture and probably understands outwardly what it means, but doesn't ever comprehend it internally. They don't ever really, they don't ever really let it penetrate into their, into their hearts. Um, so it's been sewn into their hearts, but it doesn't actually take root in their hearts in any other sense. [00:31:38] The Role of the Soil in Receiving the Word Tony Arsenal: And this is what's a little bit different from, from the other ones that we're gonna see in all of the other cases. The seed takes root, Jesse Schwamb: right? Tony Arsenal: It actually penetrates the ground and begins to grow. Um, it, this is a seed that never even makes it that far. And so it may not be someone who has like a, who necessarily has like a closed fist. I hate the gospel. I hate everything about God, but for some reason they're just not. And when we say for some reason I'm talking, obviously I'm talking la you know, horizontally. Um, we know that the reason that they don't have an open heart is 'cause the Holy Spirit is not open to their heart. But for whatever earthly temporal reason, the word just doesn't penetrate. It bounces off of them. It just doesn't get there. Not necessarily because they're outwardly hostile to it. They just maybe are not interested in it. And so this is where I think that. Along with the evil one, snatching it away. That's actually like one in the same thing. Is, is part of what I think this is getting at is that the, the, the only reason that the, um, that Satan can snatch away the word from their heart or what has been sewn into their heart is because their heart has not received it. And so it's that sort of dual function and, and maybe it's kind of like, almost like, uh, in Exodus, you know, God hardening the heart and then Pharaoh hardening the heart and those two things are happening, you know, by means of concurs that God is doing it in a divine sense. I almost feel like this is an instance where kind of like the, the census or, or with job where Satan is the one who is doing it, but it's ultimately attributed to God as well. It's the hardening of the heart, but it's also the hardness of heart. Um, all of those things are playing a dynamic, but ultimately the point here is that there are those who the word is preached to. [00:33:30] The Sower's Responsibility and the Soil's Condition Tony Arsenal: Um, you know, we will find out in, in a little bit later, like, the sower is Christ in, in these parables here. It's not, it's not generally the sowing of the word. It's Christ who is sowing the word. It's the son who is sowing, uh, the seed of the word. And we can think about that either during his own ministry. This certainly was, um, was true of his own ministry on Earth, that there were some who just did not receive the word and they just, it just bounced off of them. But then also as the son sows the seed through his people, down through the church age, through history, whether it's in the Lord's Day service or personal, witnessing, personal, you know, um, evangelism, it's still God who is sowing the seed. It's still the Lord who is the sower of the seed. But even in that context, there are still some who just don't receive it. So I think what you said earlier is really, is really spot on. This parable is not about. The skill of the sower or even the efficacy of the seed. Right. And I think sometimes people read this and they, they look at it as though it is actually the sewer's fault. What a dumb sower. He sowed it on the path. Of course it's not gonna take root. That's not the point of the parable at all. The point of the parable, and we learn it just right, this very first one, is that it has to do with the, the soil itself. Which is why, you know, I, I kind of joke about calling it the parable of the soils, and that's a fine way to refer to it. And most of these parables could have multiple different, you know, accurate titles as well. But the point of the parable, or the main point of the parable is that the soil itself is what determines the outcome. Again, you know, we, we don't need to get into all the theological details of how the soil becomes, what the soil is. This show has the word reformed in the title. You can figure out that we're gonna say, well, God is the one that prepares the soil. And that also just fits with the, with the a parable here, right? The good soil is only good because it's been tilled and prepared by the sower ahead of time, right? So I think that's, that's spot on. And, and you know, as I think about the people I know in my life, um, it's very easy to get discouraged when you try to so seed to, to follow through on the metaphor when you try to so seed and it feels like it bounces off. But we shouldn't be surprised at that. We shouldn't be surprised when someone is just not interested because Christ in his very first parable tells us there are people out there like that. That doesn't mean you don't sow the seed, it doesn't mean you don't continue to spread the seed the way that the sower does. And the reason for that is that some of it is going to take, take root, some of it is going to take root and bear fruit and you are not in charge and you don't control which one does which. We don't see the sower in this parable meticulously only identifying the good soil and only planting the seeds there. He does promiscuously spread this, so this seed everywhere that he can. [00:36:26] The Reality of Hardheartedness Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, there is something there that I think is comfortable about this hardness of the soil, because I think sometimes we underestimate that the normative position of man is to be antagonistic toward God. That's not to say like we're talking about in their every action they take, they're going to refuse to hear the gospel or they're going to fight vehemently or out outwardly against it. But it's true that everywhere we find the scriptures, whether it's this other metaphor about God, again, doing this great surgery, of taking out this height of stone, which is of course hardheartedness or whether we go to like Romans three, where Paul says that there's no one who understands, there's no one who seeks God. So we understand that the default position is, one, nobody's seeking after God. Two, that God is too threatening to us. He threatens ourself. He threatens our ego, he threatens our own way. He threatens our contingency, all of which we try to fight against, like to our own dismay. And you know, basically. You know, it's willing, suspension of disbelief. But it's interesting and I think comforting here that what he's saying is, is exactly what you've just said, which is do not he, he'd almost say like loved ones. Do not be surprised when you find that people are just not that interested. They're just not into the gospel. Because your default position is to be a gospel abuser. To be a covenant breaker. And so because of that, there's just a natural hardness. And that hardness, I think he has to draw out. He has to say it's gonna bounce and Satan's gonna snatch it away because it would be, it's too easy to look at those who are just like vehemently opposed to the gospel that wanna debate. You wanna shut you down, wanna yell at you, wanna put signs in your face, wanna spit on you. That's too easy to be like, well, of course. Those people are not gonna receive it. But what about the quiet people who just don't care? Or, yeah. What about the people who are too caught up in their way of life or their simple behaviors or their patterns, or again, just what? What about those? What about the Mormons? When they come to your door and you can speak into your blue in the face about what Paul says, like the gospel plus anything is anathema, and they're just kinda like, yes. Yeah. Totally. That's fine. Totally down with that. And you're like, yeah, but you're doing, you're doing that very thing. This is great comfort to know that even those situations where you're not at war explicitly with somebody, that it's still comforting to know that this is going to happen. And also I think it's a great reminder that apart from God, apart from that changing of the soil, as you said, Tony, we would be those same people. That's in fact where we start. I, I don't say that. Like there's a progression here. We find in the, from moving from one to four. There is though something like you've said, where it's just interesting that Jesus shows us the very kind of shades of this. And I think, again, we gotta get out of our head like the, the temporality of this or like, well, what length of time are we talking about? Like when we get to the second one, which we should move on to. And there is some sprouting of the seed. Like how much time are we talking about? Like if it's two weeks, are they in camp two, if it's three weeks, are they moved out of that into some other, one of the other schools? Uh, I think it's just to show us that there are really, again, four hearers, one believer, and we can see clearly what the one believer looks like. It's a little bit more difficult to maybe sometimes discern what the other three look like, but it gives us hope and encouragement and basically just a sense of like, this is the way the world works. To know pres positionally, that when we go out, and like you said, I love this already, this is a major theme, is speak the gospel to all people. I mean, in this way, the gospel is for all people. Because Jesus' saying, do not cast the seed here. Go and look at that narrow path and find out, try to keep it off the, the hard ground. Do not let the devil snatch it up. It just says, throw and seed, throw and seed. And so we have to keep doing that stuff. [00:40:10] The Challenge of Shallow Roots Jesse Schwamb: So let's get to number two. What, what? Yeah. What say? Yeah. Tony Arsenal: Let me read it here. This is in verse, uh, 20 and 21. Here. It says, as for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. Yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while. And when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the world, immediately he falls away. So thi this is the person who, um, who has some sort of outward conversion experience, right? It's a person who receives the word, he receives it with joy, um, and appears to sprout, right? This is seed that has taken hold and has, uh, you know, the, the, and we, we can see that it has taken hold. So it's not just some hidden seed that has roots and never breaks the surface. Right. It's a, it's a, it's a plant that has made its way into the soil. It has taken roots of some sort. Um, but the roots are shallow. The roots never actually get, uh, deep enough to, to be able to survive the sun, right. In the, the original parable, it's, it's baked by the sun. And, you know, this is, um, I think what what we're gonna see is maybe to sort of preface your question, and I think probably this is gonna be one of those two parter episodes, even though we planned it to be one parter episode. Um, I think what we're gonna see here is that you can't actually know whether someone is. The hard rocks is the rocks or the thorns. Right? Un until, until all is said and done. Right. Right. And that's part of what's difficult is you, you want to look at a parable like this, and this is where I think maybe this is a good sort of like caution against overinterpreting, the parables, right? Christ is not trying to give us a rubric to identify who is what. Jesse Schwamb: Right. He's Tony Arsenal: not trying to give us like a litmus test to say like, that person is the hard soil. That person is the rocks. That person is the thorns. And you know, this reminds me, I, I recall, I, I dunno how many years ago, it was a couple years ago when Kanye West was going through his like Jesus phase, right? And he, everyone was like, oh my gosh, I can't believe that Kanye is a Christian and he's writing this album called Jesus. Jesus Saves. And, and I, I just remember saying at the time, like, guys, there's a parable of the soils here. Like we should be. Um, we should be joyful that it, it appears that this seed is taking root, but there are lots of different outcomes when the seed takes root. And it's funny because I, I don't, I don't remember what episode this was and please don't go look it up 'cause that's a waste of everyone's time. But I remember when that conversation happened and I don't know whether there was an affirmation or a denial or what context came up in, but I remember contrasting him to Justin Bieber. And it's ironic, right, because I actually just read on Twitter today. Let me see if I can find the post during the next time you're talking. Justin Bieber posted this really amazing, theologically astute, mature kind of statement on Twitter today. And I think at the time, if you had asked me, um, is Kanye more likely to be the good soil or Justin Bieber to be the good soil, I would've said Kanye. Right? Just because he's, he was older, he is a little bit more established in himself. Um. Justin Bieber was still very young. He was, he was sort of like all over the place personality wise. He seemed to be changing radically. And it just goes to show like, you can't tell. And, and I'm not even saying right now like, this is, this is where it gets difficult. I'm not even saying right now, Justin Bieber is good soil, although I did right. Retweet his quote and did hashtag good soil. Almost aspirationally, right? But we can take a look at someone's life in retrospect and say, this person is bearing fruit, or this person is not bearing fruit. And, and that's really where this particular, um, type of soil goes. It's not so much the fruit, it's the sprout. And I think when we look at a situation like Kanye and, and. There's hopefully still a lot of life left for Kanye, and that means there's still hope for a con, a genuine conversion and bearing fruit that keeps with repentance that does not appear to be what had happened at the time. Right? He's gone totally off the rails at this point. So we pray for that. We hope, we hope for better things for him. Um, but. At the time, Kanye was, is he, he's going by Y now. I don't even know what to call him anymore. But Kanye was a sprout that grew up with great joy quickly. And what we found through time is that it appears that he, when he was, although maybe he fits better into the second, this next category that we'll have to push off till next week, I think. But either way, like he appeared to have sprouted, he appeared to have taken root and ultimately did not actually bear fruit. And that's the defining feature of these first three ones. It's not so much about what happens with the seed. Does it get in the ground? Does it not get in the grow? Does it sprouts, does it not sprout? It's ultimately about the fruitfulness, right? The final, the final phase of the parable, the final, um, the final type of soil is the one that produces fruit. So we'll get to that in detail, but that's what we need to think about. And again, like I said, it's not as though crisis saying like, all right, here's this checklist of ways to determine whether someone's conversion is correct, is true or not. Because we can't know that until after the fact and well after the fact. We also can't know that it's valid until after the fact. What I think this parable, broadly speaking, gets at is that we have to look at every situation and realize that there are these different possible outcomes. And although I don't know that this is explicitly part of the parable, it also sort of points us to the fact that like, because it's not a foregone conclusion about what's gonna happen, maybe there's also something we can do about it. Right? Right. Maybe when we realize someone might be on the rocky soil. Whether we, we have some reason to believe that or we just want to get out in front of that possibility, maybe there's still room to actually get in there and, and move the seed to a different soil, I guess might be a better way to use the metaphor is to, to just take the seed somewhere else or to till the soil, to get the rocks out of the soil. Although this is not talking about like rocks in the soil. It's talking about a layer, probably a layer of bedrock. Like Yes, exactly. Just under the surface. Jesse Schwamb: Right? So Tony Arsenal: there is an immutability about these, these different categories of, of people, and again, this is where like overinterpreting, the parable can get to be problematic, but we, we see that there are these categories, we can't necessarily know which one of these categories a person is in when they have some sort of outward expression of faith where they've received. I think we can tell the difference between that first category. Someone who just has not received the, the gospel at all, has not received the word of God at all, right? Like it's just bounced off of him. It's made no impact. I think we can see that that's a relatively straightforward, um, situation for us to assess. And of course we can't see someone's heart, but it's, it's usually pretty outwardly, readily available to us that they just have not received the word in any means. Right. When we get to these second two categories, that's not the case. We're talking about two different categories of people who have received the word and it has begun to sprout. It has begun, it actually has sprouted, not just begun to sprout, but it's sprouted. Um, I just think we need to be really careful to sort of not place someone in an immutable category until after we've seen what's gonna happen. Yes. Really across their whole life. Jesse Schwamb: Yes. [00:47:41] The Importance of Deep Roots in Faith Jesse Schwamb: I'm glad you brought that up because we really have to remember that in the last three instances, you cannot tell from the soil what the outcome will be. So it is a little bit, I'm with you, kind of a misnomer in the translation. This idea of like rocky soil. Yeah. If it were truly like rocky soil, the way that probably most of us in the Western think of it like soil mixed with gravel, right? They're probably, the sewer would be like, why would I throw it on there like that? That doesn't make any sense. Certainly again, if you're looking for that, that really fertile, well tilled ground, the one that looks promising, you wouldn't do that. So more than likely, I'm with you. We're talking about like a hired limestone layer that would've been like a few inches below, and as the sun would come down, my understanding is of course, like that limestone would heat up. It'd be like the perfect warm environment for like a seed to immediately like spring up with some hope. And that's exactly I think what Jesus is after here. It's this idea that the seed springs up immediately. People receive the message with joy. There's been no root or development to deeper moist soil though, because it doesn't exist. It gets blocked out. But inci incidentally, like the heat of that rock bed actually is the thing that causes it to germinate and produce at least a sprout really, really quickly. But as soon as like any kind of other heat comes upon it, because it cannot not grow deeper because it cannot set the roots, because it cannot get enough water from deep down, then it's going to be quick to die. I think we see this all the time. Maybe we even see this to some degree, not exclusively and in the same kind of magnitude in our own lives. But you know, we may listen to a sermon with pleasure while the impression produced in us is like only temporary, short-lived. You know, our hearts can be like that stony ground. Sometimes it may yield like a plentiful cop clap of warm feelings and like good resolutions and good vibes. How often do we hear that language? But all this time, there may be no deeply rooted work in our souls. And that first like cold blast of oppression or temptation may cause like all of that to go away. What I see interpret it from this particular group and, and this the one that follows it very much the same is like a conversion to religion. So here where this is where I firmly, like, I think we have a class, and this might trigger some people, but I'm gonna say it anyway. We have a class for this to me is deconstructionism. Yeah. And I think what I've, I've been helpful for me is to get outta my mind is that. I'm not sure that we have to be so concerned in this, this metaphor or this great parable about like what's the length of time here? So for instance, is it possible that somebody could be in this place where there is this hard layer of rock, which presents like a setting down of deep roots that could last like years on end. Yeah, where somebody has heard the gospel message has come into the life of the church and finds that this is generally a pleasant way to believe and to live and to express these ideals until maybe they have a strong voice somewhere or they're confronted with the fact that this, their message now is not very tolerant. And so as soon as there comes against them, this push that maybe what you're saying is too exclusive, that all of a sudden there really is a manifestation that there's no real root there. Yeah, there was no conversion. There was a conversion to religious principle and ideas and insomuch as those things didn't push too much against whatever objectives they had. Not even like going after what happens in the the third instance here with all the pleasures of life and all the temptations of the flesh, but just that there is some challenge. To what they believe and that it would be continually lived out in their actual lives, meaningful enough that it would impact behavior, change their mind, and continue to make them outspoken about the thing in which they're setting their roots into that if those things would cause the death of. That sprouts, then to me, that's where we find deconstruction isn't falling. And so in that case, again, it's comforting because it's not a matter of actual conversion as it were. It's not a matter of actual regeneration that hasn't actually occurred. There's plenty of reasons to come alongside and to give the gospel some kind of favor or to give it some kind of acquiescence because it's good on its own. There are lots of things that are good about it, but the rootedness in that is not merely in the outward manifestations of all the benefits of the gospel. It is getting Christ, as we've said. Yeah. And if we're not abiding in Christ, then we will necessarily die. In fact, Christ says elsewhere when he speaks to himself that even every bad branch that does not bear fruit, the father prunes and throws away. And so here we find that happening. It's, this is traumatic, it is dramatic, but this is where I think we see oftentimes Christians really get unnerved and sometimes it really, I think, rocks them when they see people who've had, like you said, Tony, like some professional faith. And I remember us talking about Kanye, and I remember us saying like, I think you and I were cautiously optimistic. We said like, this is fantastic. God does this very thing where he transforms people. And then we see in the long term, in the long run, the manifestation of that transformation, not in just merely as sinner's prayer or some expression of knowing something about the gospel intellectually, but the living it out so that the plant itself grows up in Christ to know of his great love, and then to share and abide in that love where it bears fruit. And so here I find this again, to be just very comforting because I think we see this a lot and our nerves, a lot of Christians, but I think Christ is giving an example here to say, do not be a unnerved by this. [00:53:10] Encouragement for Sowers and Believers Tony Arsenal: Yeah, maybe one last thought and then we, we can push pause until next week when we come back to this parable. Is. I think it's, there's two words in this, um, this little, these two verses here that really stick out to me. There's the, the word immediately, right? Yes. He immediately receives it with joy. That word is repeated later on when he immediately falls away. So there is a, um, there's a, a sense of suddenness to this, to this kind of, I'm using quotation marks if you're not watching the YouTube to this quotation or this, um, conversion experience, right? I think we all know people who have kind of the slow burn conversion experience, right? That's not to say that those people may not be, um, on hard soil or rocky soil. Right. But the, the person that we're talking about in that crisis talking about is the person who hears the word and has every appearance of an outward, radical, outward conversion of joy. And then joy is the second word that that shows up here. One of the things that drives me crazy, you know, maybe just to, to riff off the, the deconstruction, um, narrative a little bit is it drives me crazy when some sort of, um, high profile Christian falls away from the faith or deconstructs or falls, you know, into deep sin and then abandons the faith or has a tragedy happened in their life and whatever reason they abandon the faith. There's this tendency particularly among, I, I think sort of. I don't know if like, there still are young restless reform Christians out there, but I think it's still a valid descriptor. Kind of like the, I'm trying not to be pejorative, but sort of like the surface level tulip is what I call them, like the five point Calvinists who like heard an RC sprawl sermon one time and think that they are like the def, they're the definition of Calvinism. There's this tendency among that demographic that when somebody falls away from the faith to act as though everything about their experience of Christianity was somehow like an act like it was a, it was a, it was a play they were putting on, they were deceiving everybody. Right. That's that's not real. It's not the, it's not the way that it actually works and, and. I think the, um, the flip side and the caution for us in that is that just because our experience of Christianity and our, our experience of being in the faith feels so genuine and real and rooted, we should also recognize that like it felt real and genuine and rooted for Derek Webb or for name, name your key, you know, Joshua Harris, name your big profile deconstruction person of the day. Um, there's a caution there for us and I think that's the caution here in this, um, in this, I dunno, part of the parable is. Just as this is saying, the reason that the person falls away immediately is because there is no root in them yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, he immediately falls away, right? The cause of this is because there is no route that ca

Today, we delve into the Garden Basics archive for three segments about the importance of building your soil in the fall. We talk with America's Favorite Retired College Horticulture professor, Debbie Flower, and Sacramento's Organic Advocate, Steve Zien. We explore the vital role of nitrogen in gardening. We address a listener's concern about low nitrogen levels in soil, discussing the challenges of measurement as well as alternative testing methods. We emphasize the significance of organic amendments, such as compost and cover cropping, particularly with crops like fava beans, to enhance nitrogen levels and overall soil health. Our conversation also covers the detrimental effects of high-salt synthetic fertilizers. And, we talk about sustainable gardening practices that promote nutrient cycling and plant growth.Previous episodes, show notes, links, product information, and transcripts at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred, GardenBasics.net. Transcripts and episode chapters also available at Buzzsprout.  Now on YouTube (audio) Cover Photo: Cover Crops, including fava beans, clover, oatsLinks:Farmer Fred's Ride for the Kids!“Beyond the Garden Basics” Newsletter  By becoming a paid subscriber, you're helping support the newsletter and podcast.Shop online at the Smart Pot store! For a limited time, use coupon code FRED at checkout to receive 10% off your Smart Pot order. Click here to start shopping!Links:Crop Rotation ChartBook: “Grow Now” by Emily MurphyAll About Farmer Fred:    GardenBasics.net“Beyond the Garden Basics” NewsletterThe Farmer Fred Rant! Blog http://farmerfredrant.blogspot.comFacebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred" Instagram: farmerfredhoffman https://www.instagram.com/farmerfredhoffman/Blue Sky: @farmerfred.bsky.socialFarmer Fred Garden Minute Videos on YouTube As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here.Got a garden question? • Call or text us the question: 916-292-8964. • Fill out the contact box at GardenBasics.net• E-mail: fred@farmerfred.com Thank you for listening and subscribing to the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics Newsletter.Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics Newsletter.

BREAKING Through the SOIL | Wallstreet Trapper (Episode 161) Trappin Tuesdays Before a seed becomes a tree, it gotta break thru the soil. That soil is heavy, it's dark, it's cold—it feels like pressure. But that pressure is the proof that growth is happening. Family, your dreams are the same way. The market will bury you in red days, in losses, in setbacks, but that's just the soil. The streets will test you with weight, life will cover you in darkness, but that's just the soil. If you keep pushing, if you keep trusting, if you stay disciplined, you break thru. Breaking thru the soil means breaking past fear, breaking past old habits, breaking past everything trying to keep you buried. The light is waiting, but first you gotta endure the dirt. Every great investor, every great builder, every great human had to fight their way through the soil. Don't quit in the darkness—because breaking thru the soil is what proves you're alive, what proves you're chosen, and what sets you up to stand tall like the tree you were destined to be. ⚖️

RealDGC.com

Traditional diets maximized nutrients. Modern diets minimize them. Our current health crisis stems from our departure from traditional food and health ways – both how we raise our livestock and grow our produce, to what we do to it before it reaches our plate.   Sally Fallon Morell, the President and founder of the Weston A. Price Foundation, explains where we've gone wrong and what we can do to rectify it.   Visit Sally's website: Nourishing Traditions Follow the Wise Traditions podcast on your favorite podcast platform! Check out our sponsors: New Biology and Optimal Carnivore