“Cultivating a Gracious Spirit.” Mark 7:1-6 and Ephesians 4:29. The soil of our hearts are often found to be laden with stone and hard packed ground upon which we attempt to plant the seeds of change. Time and again we seek to remove a critical spirit but have not cultivated the heart to make room for a gracious spirit to flourish. Let us put our hand to the plow and do the work needed to change.