Sow To Please The Spirit

Sow To Please The Spirit
5-14-04

In the spring, a farmer prepares the soil, plants the seed, and waits several days for the first signs of life. Many weeks pass before a few inches of growth occur and several months go by before it's time to harvest. Much hard work and patience go into reaping a bountiful crop.

The soil of our Spiritual field is rich, full of nutrients and moisture; and, whether we realize it or not, we are working hard and planting in our field every single day. Let me say that again: Every day as we go out into the world we are planting into our Spiritual field. Anything we plant is going to grow and produce a harvest according to what we have planted.

Galatians 6:7-9
"A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."

Every day we are given the opportunity to go into the field and plant new seed; "His compassions never fail, they are new every morning" (Lamentations 3:22-23). We are also given the choice of which seed to plant. Seeds of faith and forgiveness are essential for our eternal survival. Seeds of hope and trust are necessary for a life of peace and contentment. And seeds of love, purity, worship and praise are the seeds which will make our fields beautiful - a fragrant offering to the Lord.

But there is another type of seed - the seeds of lies and deception, of worldly passions and self exaltation. Unfortunately, once these seeds are planted, they can grow faster and stronger than all competing plants. If allowed to grow, these sinful seeds will rise up to dominate the field and choke everything which draws us closer to God: "The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature" (Luke 8:14).

Today is a new day with a new opportunity to plant. We must not grow weary of planting that which draws us closer to God; "whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think of such things" (Philippians 4:8). Today, we WILL plant - so let's plant wisely!

Let's sow seed which glorifies our Heavenly Father and honors Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior; and let's nurture our field with an unending love. Let's sow for a bountiful harvest which is free of weeds as we daily abandon the sinful nature and sow to please the Spirit.

Have A Great Day!