Dear Conrad - In the parable of the farmer sowing his seed, he throws the seed different places, and when it gets thrown on the path, the rock and the thorns it dies. And I'm wondering does that mean God throws us places where we have no chance of success? I don't think that sounds like the God I've come to know, but I want to get your take on that whole thing. - patriotspy

Dear Patriotspy,

You have to get the meaning of each element. You have them reversed a little. God is not throwing our hearts on bad ground.

In this parable our hearts are the ground, not the seeds.

The seeds are the gospel.

So if your heart is unfertile soil, then you hear the gospel seeds, but it doesn't take root in your soil/heart and it withers and dies.

So God is throwing the gospel everywhere, so people can hear it. That's nice of him. It's not nice when we reject the seeds.