I
have shared several times that one of favorite preachers is Robert Morris from Gateway Church in Texas. He has inspired thinking about generosity and
giving in huge proportions. Thought I
would share another piece that brought me great insight. Read on and give generously!
The
kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should
sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself
does not know how. For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then
the head, after that the full grain in the head. But when the grain ripens,
immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.
There
are three fundamental principles relating to seed that I want to tell you
about.
1. You reap what you sow.
I'm
sure you've heard this phrase before. It's a common saying because it's a
self-evident truth. For example, if you sow corn, you reap corn; if you sow
wheat, you reap wheat; and if, as Paul suggests, you sow money, you reap money.
It's a law that was established at the creation of the world, which we read in
Then
God said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and
the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in
itself, on the earth"; and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass,
the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields
fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was
good.
However,
as glaringly obvious as this principle sounds, you'd be surprised how many
times I've observed people expecting things to work some other way in their
case. Can you imagine a farmer standing in a field in which he has sown wheat
seeds and being frustrated because corn is not appearing? That would be
foolishness. But that is precisely what so many believers do. They expect a
harvest of something they've never planted. Let me emphasize once again, this
is not a holy get-rich-quick scheme. We don't sow for the purpose of getting
more money; however, financial growth is a by-product of bountiful sowing.
2. You reap after you sow.
This
is the second principle you need to know. Once again, I know that seems
mind-numbingly simple but you cannot believe how many people say things like,
"Someday, when I have more money, I'm going to be a giver." It will
never happen. You can't reap before you sow. Once again, this is a
principle God has woven into the natural order of things. Jesus affirms this in
today's Scripture when He says, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should
scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the
seed should sprout and grow."
Imagine
the same foolish farmer I mentioned earlier now standing in the field waiting
for a crop to come in when he has never planted a seed. "Once this crop
comes up, I'm going to do some serious sowing," he says confidently.
"I'll be a big time sower if I ever get this crop to come in." Of
course, this is absurd. Yet I have heard many believers say pretty much the
same thing, such as, "If God will help me close this major business deal,
I'm really going to start giving to the church." It's the one who is
faithful with little who will receive much. You have to start where you are.
3. You reap more than you sow.
The
essence of this principle can be found in
Those
who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping,
bearing seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing
his sheaves with him.
As
this passage implies, the principle of harvest increase is so powerful that,
even if you're crying as you scatter your little bag of precious seed, your
tears will turn to rejoicing as you begin bringing in your sheaves of harvest.
Think
about it—just a few kernels of planted corn will produce a stalk with several
ears. And each ear will contain hundreds of seed kernels (approximately 400
kernels). That's a pretty good return, isn't it?
You
always get more when you sow God's way, but it's up to us to take the first
step. That starts with being faithful in planting the first seed. It may be
difficult to take the first step, but once you do you'll be rewarded with much
more than you ever expected.
(original article from
the Blessed Life devotion from Gateway Church by Robert Morris can be found at THIS LINK)
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