Rocks, Dirty Birds, and Briars

In the parable of the sower, Jesus foretold all the ways the world would try to reject God's Word. Rocks will be thrown at the righteous, dirty birds will try to steal your peace and assurance, and briars will try to choke out the clear truth with noise and confusion. Today, the rocks are hardened hearts that have turned from God, the dirty birds are enemies of the Gospel dispelling negative influences, and the briars are the media channels seeking to distract, confuse, and alarm. Satan uses these threats to scorch out, choke out, and steal away God's Word. Yet God is unchangeable and infallible. His Word is the seed that produces truthfulness, holiness, and obedience-and we are called to plant it, nurture it, and tend it in order to have a fruitful harvest.

Franklin Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan's Purse, a Christian relief and evangelism organization, is also president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. The fourth of Billy and Ruth Bell Graham's five children, Franklin is the author of several books, including the bestselling autobiography Rebel with a Cause and All for Jesus. He and his wife, Jane, make their home in North Carolina.

Donna Lee Toney, a colleague of Franklin Graham's for thirty years, has been involved in the ministries of Samaritan's Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and in literary collaboration since 1982, most recently on the release of Nearing Home with Billy Graham.