Lord of the Harvest

On June 27, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Matthew 13: 31 – 32

He presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

I must give credit for a catchy phrase to Diane Jones. In a recent conversation regarding seed and harvest she said, “It’s seed sown, not grown.” Upon elaboration she explained that our task is to sow seed, but seed sown is not immediately grown. It takes time for that seed to germinate and produce roots and then a plant. This reality is demonstrated in today’s passage. It only takes a small seed, a seed even as small as a mustard seed, but when given time, nurtured and watered, it produces a plant larger than all the other garden plants. The key here is obvious; harvests take time.

Only a fool would sow seeds today and truly expect the crop to be ready tomorrow. However, faith gives you confidence that you will receive your harvest. Cast your seed and forget about it. If you have faith that you have done what God led you to do, then you should have confidence that in due time that seed will produce a harvest. By forget about it I mean, don’t worry. Relax, have confidence that when you sow, God brings a harvest.

What do you do in the meantime? You water it with your words. You proclaim that you will be getting a crop from that seed. You thank the Father for the rain of His goodness which He sends on all your seeds. Too many times we either forget about our seed or fail in our expectation of a harvest. A farmer wouldn’t do that. Can you imagine a farmer not expecting a harvest after sowing his fields? It doesn’t happen. On the other hand, he doesn’t have to walk through the furrows everyday looking for plants poking their heads through the soil. He knows about the germination period and he bides his time.

The point of today is, sow your seed in confidence. Expect God to bring a harvest. Speak positive words about your harvest expecting it to come in. Speak confidently about the crop. You don’t have to grow the crop, just sow the seed. Seed sown, not grown. Trust our Father to produce the harvest. He will, you know.

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Bad Seed

On September 1, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Job 4: 8

According to what I have seen, those who plow iniquity and those who sow trouble harvest it.

According to what I have seen, this verse is true, alarmingly true. Sometimes when bad things happen it is, unfortunately, because we have sown bad seed. It is almost frightening at times to think about what kind of seed we might have in the ground. Whatever we have sown will produce a harvest. Galatians 6: 7 couldn’t be more clear, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.” This may sound like pretty bad news but we have heard that the Gospel is supposed to be good news, so, how can this verse inform our lives for the positive?

First, if you are living in a deluge of bad things happening, frustrations and just generally unsettled waters, inquire of the Lord if any of it is the harvest of seed you have sown. We certainly don’t want to hear God tell us, “yes,” but even if He does, at least we can develop a strategy for overcoming it. Remember that Jesus made us overcomers. If the answer is yes, there is an answer because Jesus made a way for us. You can ask your Father what the seed was, and then it is as simple as repenting. What is repentance? It is a change of direction, a change of heart, a change of mind. If you will just tell God with a sincere heart that you are sorry and that is not what you want for your life He will shower you with the fruit of His forgiveness.

Next, ask Him to redeem the bad seed. Ask Him to kill it at the root. You can also ask Him to reveal to you any other bad seed and the two of you can uproot it. You do not have to live with the produce of your errors but you do have to be sincere about your change of direction if you want Dad to destroy the bad crop.

Look, everyone makes mistakes and we are all learning and growing. Sometimes we let that old dead man out of his grave and he always sows bad seed. No worries. Jesus is the master gardener. Humbly ask him to help you and he will hoe new ground shoulder to shoulder with you.

Lastly, if you are sowing discord, grief, or any negativity into the lives of others, please be advised. It is going to come back to you. And the great and horrible thing about a seed is that it produces much more harvest than its size. There is forgiveness for this but you need the help of the Father. Humility and honesty will avail much. Prostrate your ego at the feet of Jesus and he will help you.

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IT WORKS!

On January 19, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Luke 6: 38

Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, they will pour into your lap. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.

If you have been reading this devotional for any period of time you know that I believe in this principle. I very much believe in the principle of seed, time and harvest but it is so easy to lose our conviction as we await our harvest. I shared the story of my overseeding my lawn this year and how I was beginning to wonder if anything was ever going to happen. All of a sudden, grass sprung up all over my yard. So the message there is, “Don’t give up on your seed.”

Recently I saw the truth of give and it will be given to you in striking reality and I want you to know that it really does work. Someone I know gave a significant contribution to a ministry. There were no strings attached. She is just a cheerful giver. The next thing she knew was that she received a gift of greater value than the donation she made. The gift was completely unexpected. It fairly came out of the blue.

Later she called me with her testimony. She realized that God led her to give. You see, God had in mind all along the blessing He wanted to get to her so He had her sow a seed which He then multiplied into something larger. God is so good and that is the way He works. And, it works all of the time. Even when you don’t see it working, those little seeds are in the ground sending out roots and growing. Before you know it you have a crop. Yahoo for harvest! 

So this isn’t theory, it isn’t empty theology. The Bible is a “How To” manual and it tells us how to reap a harvest … plant a seed. If you give, God will take that little seed and turn it into a full harvest. Just think how many tomatoes one tomato plant yields. That is God’s economy at work. Whatever you give to Him, He multiplies back to you many times over. So, if you have a financial need, give. It is the most counter-intuitive thing in the world but it works gang. Give and it shall be given unto you. Don’t believe me? Run your own experiment. See what God will do when you become a giver. I’m telling you, you will never have to worry about finances again.

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