Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy.
Psalm 126:5 NLT
http://youtu.be/7Qp11X6LKYY - Blessed be Your Name - Matt Redman
This week as I was doing my homework for "Stepping Up", the Beth Moore bible study my ladies' class is doing,
I learned that simply reading, even studying God's Word, isn't what will bring me a harvest of blessings. Think about it. I can be moved to tears, I can be convicted of my shortcomings and even say "amen" when the preacher tells me I need to love more deeply. But if I don't take action, if I don't plant the seeds of change, if I don't obey God's instructions instead of just reading and crying over some moving passage or story, what good does it do? A seed must be planted to grow.
Jesus tells the parable of the Sower. "A sower went out to sow his seed..." Some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot and the birds ate the seed. Some fell on rocky ground and grew, but soon wilted and died because there was no moisture. Some fell among thorns and the thorns choked out the seed. But some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.
The disciples asked Him what this parable meant and He answered.
Luke 8:11-15 NLT
“This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God’s word. 12 The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. 13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation. 14 The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. 15 And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.
Psalm 126 is a a song of promise. Listen to the words:
When the LORD brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream!
2 We were filled with laughter, and we sang for joy.
And the other nations said, “What amazing things the LORD has done for them.”
3 Yes, the LORD has done amazing things for us! What joy!
4 Restore our fortunes, LORD, as streams renew the desert.
5 Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy.
6 They weep as they go to plant their seed,
but they sing as they return with the harvest.
The Israelites sang this song of hope and promise as they remembered how God had saved them in the past. When things were so bad they had almost given up hope, God restored their fortunes. He turned their tears to laughter. Even the other nations saw how the Lord had done great things for the Israelites.
Verse 4 begins with a plea to God, to save them once again. The Israelites know that God is able, and they know that He will redeem them just like He did in the past.
Look at verses 5-6. "those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. They weep as they go to plant their seed BUT they sing as they return with the harvest." The Israelites were going through another tough time. But the promise was if they would keep planting (obeying) the seed (God's Word), they would see a harvest (redemption).
God will restore our fortunes just as He did the Israelites if we keep our eyes on Him. When things are too difficult to bear, and we are overwhelmed with fear or sadness, or pain, instead of giving up on God, we are to keep doing what He tells us is right and good, even when it doesn't make sense to us. If we listen and obey His instructions, He will redeem the circumstance. Our harvest may not come until we see Jesus face to face, but we can be assured of this promise. God has a Harvest waiting for us if we keep planting the seed - even through our tears.
Each step we take in this life can lead to that Harvest God has for us. Sometimes the growing process we endure is painful and we can find ourselves wondering why God allows such pain in our lives. What if God is using that battle I'm facing to strengthen muscles that I'll need for the next leg of my journey? I'm convinced God doesn't allow anything in my life that He can't use to help me draw closer to Him, or maybe to help someone else draw closer to Him. I don't always understand why, but I trust God's love for me enough to know He doesn't allow the pain without first filtering it through His love for me. I trust His promise that Jesus will give me the strength I need to do all things necessary to get through any circumstance He allows. When I trust Him even when I can't understand, the Seed of His Word grows and develops in my heart, and I become more like the person He created me to me. And that's a very good thing.
Beth tells the story of a mission trip she and her husband Keith made to Africa. The small villages they visited were filled with children and adults who were desperately malnourished.
from Stepping Up by Beth Moore - page 81...
"I learned something in one of the rural villages that will mark my teaching and response to the Word of God. As we stood, trying to absorb the sights and smells of living death, our new friend, Isak Pretorius said, "One of the most frustrating things is that the villages where they receive seed, they often eat the seed rather than planting it and bring forth the harvest." I couldn't get the statement out of my mind and suddenly had an answer to the questions I most often ask God: Why do some people see the results of the Word and others don't? Why do some study the Word of God yet remain in their captivity?
Some just eat the seed and never sow it for a harvest. You want examples? Why have many of us heard hundreds of messages on freedom, done every line of Bible studies like Breaking Free, wept over them, been blessed by them, and even memorized parts of them, yet remain in captivity? Because we ate the seed instead of sowing it. Why have many of us read books on forgiving people, known the teaching were true and right, cried over them, marked them up with our highlighters, yet remain in our bitterness? Because we ate the seed instead of sowing it. Why have we repeatedly heard how Christ has forgiven our sinful pasts and sobbed with gratitude over the grace of it, yet we remain in bondage to condemnation? Because we ate the seed instead of sowing it.
Sometimes we don't even realize the difference. We'll think we accepted the teaching because we were so moved by it. But you see, the seed of God's Word can fill our stomachs and give us immediate satisfaction and still not produce a harvest - that's when we eat it but don't sow it. Many times we apply biblical truth to our theologies without applying it to the actual practicalities of life. I know because I practiced this approach for years and could not understand why I was still in bondage.
I cannot say this loudly enough. God's Word is meant to be applied to our reality. We can "Amen!" the pastor as he preaches sacrificial love. We can walk to the car and comment on the great sermon he gave, drive home, and march in as mean and cold as the person who pulled out of the driveway. We decide surely God did not mean us to apply His truth to our reality because He knows how difficult this or that person is to love. What just happened? We ate the seed instead of sowing it.
...I'm concerned that many of us eat the seed instead of sowing it. Then we charge God with unfaithfulness when we don't get the harvest He promised. God repeatedly says that a harvest is sown - not eaten as seed. We have to get down on our knees in the hardship of our circumstances and apply God's Word to the most difficult places, believing God will bring a harvest....
We were meant to eat from the sheaves - not from the seeds."
This study of the Psalms of Ascents has really been a blessing to me. Starting with Psalm 120 all the way through Psalm 134, these psalms are songs that praise, encourage, remind us of God's faithfulness and His goodness... Today, I learned that I've been eating lots of seed instead of allowing God to plant it in my heart so that it grow and nourish my spirit.
from Stepping Up - " we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.."
I'm going to have struggles and suffering in this world, but if I keep on trusting in God's promises and don't give up, the harvest will come. I believe His promise. And Heaven will be so worth all the suffering and all the struggles.
Galatians 6:9
Let us not become weary in doing good for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
We will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Don't give up before the Harvest. Keep allowing God's Word, His Seed, to grow in your heart. Even when times are very hard, You can trust that God's promises are true. A Harvest is coming if we just hold on.
Dear LORD, I remember when You restored my fortune. I was scared and ready to give up, but like a dream, You came to my rescue. When I realized what You had done for me, I laughed until I cried with tears of joy. I saw the great thing You had done for me and I praise You and thank You so very much.
LORD please restore my good fortune again. No matter what the circumstances may be, I will continually sow even in my tears until reaping time comes, and then I will be shouting for joy. I know that although I may have a heavy heart now as I carry the weight of my burden, but I will plant Your Seed of truth in my heart, so that I will be able to enjoy the Harvest You have for me.
It's not about me.
