Reaping What You Sow
Sigh...there may be no more beautiful sight to me in all of this land than the sight of rows and rows of wobbly, round, orange gourds lined up and ready for the picking. Pumpkins! I love them. Yes, I know it's only August, but the temperatures have cooled, my kids are back in school next week, and my mind is already set to the upcoming season and all of the fun that it brings! Hanging out at the pumpkin patch may be one of my most favorite things.
It takes a pumpkin approximately four months to grow from a seed to the time that it's ready for picking. I'm going to guess that when the farmers plant their pumpkins in the late spring they don't plant pumpkin seeds expecting to see watermelons pop up in October. Could you imagine? Haha. What if you planted apple trees and ended up with a vineyard? What if we never knew what the heck we were going to get, we just planted seeds and waited for the harvest? Oh my, looks like we're eating a lot of potatoes and pineapple this year! Just leave it up to God - surprise us!
But that's not exactly how it works, is it? We put a certain seed in the ground, we get a certain crop. Scripture uses the idea of sowing and reaping over and over again to teach us about what we can expect to happen in our own lives based on decisions we make. We can't know EVERYTHING about our futures, but we can expect certain outcomes when we do certain things. This is a promise from the Lord. Let's take a look at just a few of those promises:
"As I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same." Job 4:8
"Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity, and the rod of his fury will fail." Proverbs 22:8
"Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you." Hosea 10:12
[The Cheerful Giver] "The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully." 2 Corinthians 9:6
It's pretty straight forward, really. If you stir up trouble, you're going to get trouble in return. If you are unjust, don't expect to receive justice when you need it. If you act righteously, you will get steadfast love. If you give a little you get a little, if you give a lot, you get more in return - and that doesn't always have to do with money! You reap what you sow.
While it's a simple concept to understand, applying it may not always be so easy. And we may not always be AWARE of when we are "planting seeds" in our life.
Aha. That's the rub.
I used to believe the lie that if I had an issue with somebody that I could vent out all of my frustrations when I was alone to "get it out of my system." I didn't want to slip up and say the wrong thing around them, so instead I'd say it to myself when I was on my own. Get it ALL out there in private and be done with it. How do you think that worked out for me? Should have read Luke 6:45:
"The good man brings good things out of the good treasure of his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil treasure of his heart. For out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks."
So it turns out that when you sit and stew on something in your own heart and mind, eventually those thoughts come spilling out of your mouth whether you like it or not! In the heat of the moment, maybe when you least expect it, whatever you've been thinking the most about, that's what you'll say. Even our thoughts sow seeds in our own hearts and minds that we will eventually reap the consequences of. This is why it is so important to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5) and even when we are all alone and think no one is looking or listening, we must still sow righteousness! It is not okay to sit around and wish ill-will on someone who has wronged us. Because...you guessed it...that negativity is a seed sown, and the bible tells us that which we sow we will reap!
Well geez louis, Adrien, I can't be perfect! You're telling me I can't even THINK bad things?
No, I'm not. God is. :)
Sin is born in our hearts and in our minds. It starts out at as a tiny seed and then it grows and grows and eventually it comes spilling out. When it's time for the harvest, the moment of testing, we will fail if we don't take those thoughts captive and give them to God. We will fail if all we have done is sown seeds of negativity. And PLEASE do not fall for the lie that our bar is set so ridiculously low that God just expects us to sin sin sin all day long. Haha. Sounds pretty dumb when we say that out loud doesn't it? But we all think that at some point. "Aw, I'm not perfect and God knows that." That's true. He is very forgiving that Father of ours. But he still EXPECTS our best, because he's a good Father. We cannot always control the thoughts our minds are bombarded with, but we can control how much time we give them and what we do with those thoughts. Being a child of God means we have a dad who can read our minds...so...yep, better behave in there, too. :)
"Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life." Galatians 6:7-8
While the bible often uses sowing and reaping to warn us about what not to do, I love when it illustrates the very good things that come with sowing seeds of righteousness. "...the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life." There are definitely seeds we can sow intentionally. Reading the word, praying, praising, sharing the gospel, serving, giving...these are works, and while our works can not save us they are evidence of our faith, and they are positive seeds sewn into our lives. These things keep our hands and our hearts busy, and when we're busy doing diligent work for the Lord, it's much more difficult for the enemy to creep in and encourage us to plant the wrong seeds which he will more than happily come back to water later.
So what happens when a good seed is planted? Do we just walk away and hope for the best?
The thing about planting seeds of righteousness is that they take time and due diligence to grow. Unless they are being continually watered, weeded, and getting the right amount of exposure to the right kind of light, they will never take root and flourish.
"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up." Galatians 6:9
We must not tire of "doing good" if we want the harvest of blessings that will come from those seeds of righteousness. Could you imagine if we all had an actual physical garden to represent our spiritual state? What would your garden look like today?
A healthy garden would probably have various plants growing in various stages, but growing all the same. Are your plants strong and beautiful and full of fruit, or are they looking a little limp today? Does your garden look like a lush oasis, or maybe...does it just look like dirt? What kind of seeds have you been planting over the last few months? Is your garden so neglected that it's been overgrown with weeds? Or is it full of flowering buds just waiting to burst forth for the harvest?
Imagine that our spiritual gardens grew in our front yards for the whole world to see. Wow, just the thought of that makes me feel very exposed! But you know what? There's only one person who any of us should worry about knowing the state of our spiritual health, and He already knows. If the thought of a "spiritual" garden growing in your front yard makes you even the slightest bit uncomfortable, then shouldn't the fact that God can already see it make us equally aware of our shortcomings? Should we not care MORE about what God thinks than what our neighbors think? Are our neighbors going to be standing next to us in judgement someday? Nope. Only one has the right to judge us, and we can't hide anything from him.
Reaping what we sow is a much deeper concept than the whole "what goes around comes around" idea that the world has. It's an intentional way of life. We must plant certain seeds on purpose, and we must avoid planting other kinds of seeds on purpose. Then, we make choices every single day that either water our seeds or douse poison on them. But oh, what a reward if we do not give up! God expects his kids to work hard and PLAY hard. He wants his children to have the very best of everything, that we may have life and have it abundantly. He takes great delight and pleasure in seeing his children reap the benefit of their work!
"What gain has the worker from his toil? I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live; also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil - this is God's gift to man." Ecclesiastes 3:9-13
What an amazing father we have! What does he want from us? To do the good work he has commissioned us to do, to be joyful, and then to eat and drink and take pleasure for a job well done. Only the lies of the enemy would tell you otherwise. He comes only to steal and destroy, and watch out, because that sneaky snake would love to slither into your garden and sell you a few lies today! Be so busy planting and watering that you don't even have time to stop and entertain him. Because we know that we will reap what we sow, and when we have no time for the enemy, we are sowing treasure in paradise! No matter how full of trials our current life may be, our ultimate reward as a good and faithful servant is far better than we can even dream. He is preparing a place for those who call on His name. That's insane to me! Like, right now the seeds I am sowing here are storing things up for me in ETERNITY. (Matthew 6:19-21) That is crazy and awesome!
I hope that the seeds you are sowing right now will produce a crop for you that will last for ALL of eternity! Never tire of doing good, my friends. May the Lord bless you abundantly today!
But that's not exactly how it works, is it? We put a certain seed in the ground, we get a certain crop. Scripture uses the idea of sowing and reaping over and over again to teach us about what we can expect to happen in our own lives based on decisions we make. We can't know EVERYTHING about our futures, but we can expect certain outcomes when we do certain things. This is a promise from the Lord. Let's take a look at just a few of those promises:
"As I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same." Job 4:8
"Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity, and the rod of his fury will fail." Proverbs 22:8
"Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you." Hosea 10:12
[The Cheerful Giver] "The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully." 2 Corinthians 9:6
It's pretty straight forward, really. If you stir up trouble, you're going to get trouble in return. If you are unjust, don't expect to receive justice when you need it. If you act righteously, you will get steadfast love. If you give a little you get a little, if you give a lot, you get more in return - and that doesn't always have to do with money! You reap what you sow.
While it's a simple concept to understand, applying it may not always be so easy. And we may not always be AWARE of when we are "planting seeds" in our life.
Aha. That's the rub.
I used to believe the lie that if I had an issue with somebody that I could vent out all of my frustrations when I was alone to "get it out of my system." I didn't want to slip up and say the wrong thing around them, so instead I'd say it to myself when I was on my own. Get it ALL out there in private and be done with it. How do you think that worked out for me? Should have read Luke 6:45:
"The good man brings good things out of the good treasure of his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil treasure of his heart. For out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks."
So it turns out that when you sit and stew on something in your own heart and mind, eventually those thoughts come spilling out of your mouth whether you like it or not! In the heat of the moment, maybe when you least expect it, whatever you've been thinking the most about, that's what you'll say. Even our thoughts sow seeds in our own hearts and minds that we will eventually reap the consequences of. This is why it is so important to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5) and even when we are all alone and think no one is looking or listening, we must still sow righteousness! It is not okay to sit around and wish ill-will on someone who has wronged us. Because...you guessed it...that negativity is a seed sown, and the bible tells us that which we sow we will reap!
Well geez louis, Adrien, I can't be perfect! You're telling me I can't even THINK bad things?
No, I'm not. God is. :)
Sin is born in our hearts and in our minds. It starts out at as a tiny seed and then it grows and grows and eventually it comes spilling out. When it's time for the harvest, the moment of testing, we will fail if we don't take those thoughts captive and give them to God. We will fail if all we have done is sown seeds of negativity. And PLEASE do not fall for the lie that our bar is set so ridiculously low that God just expects us to sin sin sin all day long. Haha. Sounds pretty dumb when we say that out loud doesn't it? But we all think that at some point. "Aw, I'm not perfect and God knows that." That's true. He is very forgiving that Father of ours. But he still EXPECTS our best, because he's a good Father. We cannot always control the thoughts our minds are bombarded with, but we can control how much time we give them and what we do with those thoughts. Being a child of God means we have a dad who can read our minds...so...yep, better behave in there, too. :)
"Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life." Galatians 6:7-8
While the bible often uses sowing and reaping to warn us about what not to do, I love when it illustrates the very good things that come with sowing seeds of righteousness. "...the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life." There are definitely seeds we can sow intentionally. Reading the word, praying, praising, sharing the gospel, serving, giving...these are works, and while our works can not save us they are evidence of our faith, and they are positive seeds sewn into our lives. These things keep our hands and our hearts busy, and when we're busy doing diligent work for the Lord, it's much more difficult for the enemy to creep in and encourage us to plant the wrong seeds which he will more than happily come back to water later.
So what happens when a good seed is planted? Do we just walk away and hope for the best?
The thing about planting seeds of righteousness is that they take time and due diligence to grow. Unless they are being continually watered, weeded, and getting the right amount of exposure to the right kind of light, they will never take root and flourish.
"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up." Galatians 6:9
We must not tire of "doing good" if we want the harvest of blessings that will come from those seeds of righteousness. Could you imagine if we all had an actual physical garden to represent our spiritual state? What would your garden look like today?
A healthy garden would probably have various plants growing in various stages, but growing all the same. Are your plants strong and beautiful and full of fruit, or are they looking a little limp today? Does your garden look like a lush oasis, or maybe...does it just look like dirt? What kind of seeds have you been planting over the last few months? Is your garden so neglected that it's been overgrown with weeds? Or is it full of flowering buds just waiting to burst forth for the harvest?
Imagine that our spiritual gardens grew in our front yards for the whole world to see. Wow, just the thought of that makes me feel very exposed! But you know what? There's only one person who any of us should worry about knowing the state of our spiritual health, and He already knows. If the thought of a "spiritual" garden growing in your front yard makes you even the slightest bit uncomfortable, then shouldn't the fact that God can already see it make us equally aware of our shortcomings? Should we not care MORE about what God thinks than what our neighbors think? Are our neighbors going to be standing next to us in judgement someday? Nope. Only one has the right to judge us, and we can't hide anything from him.
Reaping what we sow is a much deeper concept than the whole "what goes around comes around" idea that the world has. It's an intentional way of life. We must plant certain seeds on purpose, and we must avoid planting other kinds of seeds on purpose. Then, we make choices every single day that either water our seeds or douse poison on them. But oh, what a reward if we do not give up! God expects his kids to work hard and PLAY hard. He wants his children to have the very best of everything, that we may have life and have it abundantly. He takes great delight and pleasure in seeing his children reap the benefit of their work!
"What gain has the worker from his toil? I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live; also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil - this is God's gift to man." Ecclesiastes 3:9-13
What an amazing father we have! What does he want from us? To do the good work he has commissioned us to do, to be joyful, and then to eat and drink and take pleasure for a job well done. Only the lies of the enemy would tell you otherwise. He comes only to steal and destroy, and watch out, because that sneaky snake would love to slither into your garden and sell you a few lies today! Be so busy planting and watering that you don't even have time to stop and entertain him. Because we know that we will reap what we sow, and when we have no time for the enemy, we are sowing treasure in paradise! No matter how full of trials our current life may be, our ultimate reward as a good and faithful servant is far better than we can even dream. He is preparing a place for those who call on His name. That's insane to me! Like, right now the seeds I am sowing here are storing things up for me in ETERNITY. (Matthew 6:19-21) That is crazy and awesome!
I hope that the seeds you are sowing right now will produce a crop for you that will last for ALL of eternity! Never tire of doing good, my friends. May the Lord bless you abundantly today!
Thank you for your post! This topic was actually weighing on me over the past week or so - thank you for sharing and expanding on what God had put in my heart; it is clear to me He speaks through you, and I appreciate all of the help and reminders I can get! The thought recently was that maybe if I stop talking about certain things, or voicing certain thoughts, that maybe eventually the thoughts themselves will stop - And then you came along and put it into better words!! Great message and lesson, thank you for writing! I know the blog helps plant the "good" seeds; I can't wait for the crop to flourish!!!
ReplyDeleteCheers! ❤️
There is great power in our thoughts and words and what we speak into existence! :) Thanks for your comments as always!
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