February 9, 2013 … Sow In Tears … Reap In Joy!

Daily Berry Patch Devotions in 2013 - Day 40

Passage of the Day: Psalm 126: 5-6 [NLT] … 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.
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Reference Passage #1: Romans 7: 18 : [NLT] … {One way to sow seeds; … seeds of self pity and sin. } …  
18 I know I am rotten through and through so far as my old sinful nature is concerned. No matter which way I turn, I can’t make myself do right. I want to, but I can’t. 

Reference Passage #2: Romans 8: 5-6 : [NLT] … {Another way to sow seeds; … seeds of love in the Spirit. } …  
5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. 6 If your sinful nature controls your mind, there is death. But if the Holy Spirit controls your mind, there is life and peace. 

My Journal for Today: Everyday, as Kingdom planters, we go out into the fields of the Kingdom to plant seeds. And quite often we go out to confront a world full of hurt – maybe even personal pain. So, we’re out there planting seeds in tears, just as Psalm 126: 5-6 posits. But in these circumstances we have a choice as Christian seed-sowers. We can either plant seeds of self-pity and sinful selfishness; or we can plant seeds of Spirit-filled joy and selflessness. And if we do the latter, as the Psalm reports, we will return from the fields with a harvest of joy.

That’s what the Apostle Paul was trying to communicate in his description of two types of life attitudes; and he used himself as an example in Romans 7 as a seed-sower of self-pity – the “woe is me” Christian. See this example above in my reference citation from Romans 7. But there is another way to be out there in God’s fields, planting seeds of life in God’s kingdom soil; and that is the Romans 8 model of seed-planting … the Spirit-led, Spirit-empowered, seed-sower.

Everyday in the ministry to which God has called me, I deal with men who are almost overwhelmed by their own past patterns of selfish sin; and it’s all too easy for them to choose to sow the seeds of life in self-pity and sensuous selfishness. But they discover that even in the midst of such overriding feelings of self doubt, when they CHOOSE to sow seeds of faith, reaching out to plant seeds of hope, such as helping others or seeking after God’s will and His way through His word, they will ultimately come back from the fields with a harvest of fruitfulness.

Everyday we can choose to sow seeds from the flesh (see Galatians 5: 19-21) or we can choose, as Christians, to sow to the fruit of the Spirit (see Galatians 5: 22: 23); and even when we go out in tears, rejecting the temptation to sow in the former way, and rather, sowing seeds of fruitful faith, we will come back from the fields with a harvest of love, joy, peace, and all the other fruit of the Spirit as well.

It’s our choice today, as God’s seed bearers. … Will we go out and sow with a Romans 7 attitude; or will we choose to sow our seeds with a Romans 8 attitude? Will we be seed planters in the manner of Galatians 5: 19-21 or will we sow seeds of Spirit-led fruitfulness from Galatians 5: 22-23?

Personally, … I’m going to do all I can … today, … even though the fields cry out weeping, to come back, after my seed-planting with a harvest of joy. How about you?

My Prayer for Today ,,, Lord, help me to plant Your seeds of hope today; and Holy Spirit, give me the seeds of Your ministry to plant into the lives of others. … Amen