Sowing Bountifully

For today's Flat Tire Ministry Thought I'd like to start out with a parable.  

 

"In his will, a father divided the family farm into three parcels, one for each of his three children. When the man died and the land had been divided the three children took ownership of their individual portion of the farm and became the responsible party for the land's use and productivity. One of the three children stood at the highest point on their section of property and dreamed of the potential that the property possessed. The child even prayed for a bountiful harvest, yet when planting time arrived this child was busy tending to other matters and failed to sow any seeds for the year's crops. Despite all of this child's good intentions and latent efforts, the only things that sprouted and grew on this child's section of the farm were weeds and plants that did not produce edible crops. The child was sorrowful, but was unable to provide sustenance for his family. 

 

The second child put together a plan on how to best utilize her portion of the family farm, but when planting season was upon her, she was busy with other business interests and did not fully implement her plan. She planted the seed, but she did so sparsely because it took so much time and effort. As the seeds began to break the surface of the soil and the heat of the day dried up the ground, the daughter was off enjoying summer vacations and the pleasures of excess. The heat and lack of nurturing care made for a mediocre crop and the daughter's harvest was limited and sparse.

 

The third child immediately began fertilizing and prepping the soil in anticipation of the upcoming growing season. She planted an abundant variety of seeds, more than needed just in case, and then continuously nurtured the seeds and sprouts as they broke ground and began the process towards maturity. This child weeded the field to assure the plants received adequate sunlight and water, and when storms threatened the third daughter's fields, she checked on her plants and nestled soil back around the tender plants after the storms to assure her plants had the best opportunity to grow and create a harvest that would provide not only for her family, but also provide a surplus to share with neighbors in need."

 

For our sustenance sowing and reaping is paramount. Our society has moved away from being one of self-sufficiency through an agrarian lifestyle to one of dependency on large scale industrial type farming and importing to provide our daily nutrition. Through that transition we as a nation have lost the relevance between sowing and reaping. Today, it would appear that ordering our groceries on-line and having them delivered to our doorsteps is only logical and time efficient. Yet, once we moved ourselves away from being a society that valued the hard work placed on sowing our own crops, reaping the harvest of our labor, and understanding that the ideology of sowing and reaping transcends seeds and crops, we have in turn lost our understanding of how sowing and reaping is God's plan on how we are to raise our families and prepare them to be the next generation of yeoman workers for His Kingdom. 

 

Although our society today has significantly moved away from the ideology of sowing and reaping, it is not one that modern society fully owns. In the Book of Galatians, Paul points out to the church there that they are at the same level of misalignment. “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life” (Galatians 6:7-8). The parable above would have just as aptly resonated with men and women in that era as it should for us today. It is my hope that even though we are not a society of planters and harvesters for the majority of our sustenance, we can apply the significance of this story to whatever it is that you should be doing more of when it comes to sowing and reaping. Whether it is investing quality time into raising your children, or living out your faith at your job or in school each day, we should be sowing to the purpose God placed you on this rock to do. Demonstrating giving over seeking to always receive, pouring into the lives of those you live and work with instead of always seeking to satisfy our own set of wants and desires. Serving others from whatever position you hold is a sure-fire way to sow to the Spirit of God. Instead of asking what can I get out of this, maybe you could ask how will this help someone else other than myself. 

 

Consequently, we are all farmers whether we literally or figuratively work with our hands in the soil or not. We will ultimately each fulfill the role of one of the three siblings in the above parable. Do you as a parent, take a laziez-faire approach to parenting? Do you allow the kids you teach or coach to form their own opinions based on what they see on the internet and social media or do you pour into them the principles of right over wrong, giving over getting, and loving instead of hatred? Or are you more like the second child in our parable that gives a fair amount of effort into being a representative of God for your family and those you live and work with each day, but due to overbooked calendars and the busyness of life what really matters most gets pushed to the side so that you can "live" life? Finally, you may be sowing in similar fashion to the third sibling in the parable. If so, share your sowing skills with others. We may not be sowing our seeds in the spring near as much as we should, but if you are sowing to the Spirit and reaping the harvest that He intends for all of us to obtain, then teach, demonstrate, and lead others to a better understanding of sowing and reaping. If we do our part, then God is faithful and He will provide the harvest bountifully! "I planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase" I Corinthians 3:6

 

Analyze your daily life for a minute. Are you sowing to the flesh or to the Spirit? What have you reaped and what do you hope to reap? Is your investment into your garden going to provide a bountiful harvest? If you aren't content with what you see, then make the decision to reprioritize your time and invest your efforts into the garden that will provide.

Coach Carter