Words to live by for Sunday 21st March 2010 as we prepare the ground of our harvest

And He was saying to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into His harvest (Luke 10:2 NAS).

For us to produce a harvest of good fruit, the soil that the seed is sown into must be able to provide the relevant nutrients, heat, light and so on to enable the dead seed to burst forth and reproduce. These parables that Jesus taught us are intended for us to get ourselves right so that can demonstrate His power among those who we come into contact with.

We are told elsewhere is scripture that as long as the earth remains there will be seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter and day and night (Gen 8:22). We are therefore reminded that there will always be sowing and reaping.  These allegories are intended to get us to live lives that are commensurate with the kingdom values that Jesus taught us.  The problem we have today is this: many people still do not understand the parables and take them literally and miss the point.  The point is this; our bodies are the ground into which the first seed must be sown. This is the seed from the fruit of the Spirit. This seed is called love.

We will never produce a harvest if the following conditions are not in operation:

1. We are planted in the right soil. We all need to be in a place where we are receiving the right nourishment. We must be a Psalm 1 individual and be planted somewhere.
2. We are under authority. Everyone must be accountable to someone! There must be people who can tell us we are wrong or that we are going down the wrong road.
3. We are teachable; if we are not teachable and we know it all, we will never develop our minds to receive what God intended for us in the first place.
4. We enlist in the army of Jesus.  We are called to fight the good fight of faith.  That is, we make decisions that are guided by the word. Therefore we need to know and understand the word of God so that we can dissect it and apply it to our lives.

Let me assess what this mean to me and my family in the busyness of life.

I need to reassess my life pattern and ask myself, why do I do what I do? And also why do I believe what I believe?

Jesus told us that the harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few (Luke 10:2). Before we can go are reap the harvest out there let us get the right seed in our own soil. Ask the lord of the harvest to show you where weeds are growing so that you can uproot them. Weeds will inevitably be there but once they are recognised get rid of them. Get the soil right and the harvest will be great.

This year 2010 is the season for producing good fruit. Get out your pruning knife and all the other implements that can cut back the weeds of deceit, lies and complacency and get ready for your harvest.

Read and meditate on 1Samuel 3:11 and wait to welcome your harvest by the end of the year!