Sowing And Reaping

1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26

"But Samuel ministered before the LORD, even as a child, wearing a linen ephod. Moreover his mother used to make him a little robe, and bring it to him year by year when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, The LORD give you descendants from this woman for the loan that was lent to the LORD. Then they would go to their own home....And the child grew in stature, and in favor both with the LORD and men."

A lot is made these days about the principle of sowing and reaping. Promises of abundance and prosperity so fill the pulpits and platforms of major ministries that I am almost reluctant to begin the new year with this devotional for fear that readers will inappropriately associate me with certain ones who make a ministry of fund raising. But this is not the case.

Sowing and reaping are biblical principles that affect our relationship with the Lord and with the work of the Lord. And let's face a truth here. In our intensely materialistic society, it takes resources - man power and money power - to maintain a presence for the Gospel and to reach out to souls with the Gospel.

Present trends reveal several important issues. I'll cite three.

(1) More men and women are retiring from ministry than are entering ministry.

(2) Rising costs for material resources continue to rise.

(3) In the arena created by the above two items, and in a time when only the Gospel can truly meet, minister to, and remedy the enormous needs in a vast multitude of crisis filled lives, the bulk and burden of responsibility is laid upon the shoulders of fewer people who hear and answer the call of God to participate wholeheartedly in the Gospel mission.

Let me point out two things relating to the life of Hannah.

(1) Hannah was blessed for dedicating and offering Samuel to the Lord. Following the miraculous birth of Samuel she was blessed with three more sons and two daughters.

(2) God's people were blessed by the dedication and offering of Samuel to the Lord. The Lord had in Samuel someone who would listen for His voice, follow His directions, and provide Godly leadership for the people of God.

Hannah could have been selfish. Hannah could have said, "This one is mine. Now look at what I've got." Instead she said,

"For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. Therefore I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the LORD." (1 Sam. 1:27-28)

What are we sowing into the work of the Kingdom of God? Are we giving (sowing) ourselves unreservedly and wholeheartedly to the Lord and to the work of the Lord? Are we yielding (sowing) our resources into the work of the Kingdom of God so others can share in the comforts, encouragements, and blessings that we have received from the Lord?

More than ever, all of us need the intervention and blessing of the Lord in our lives. We need miracles of grace, provision and healing. We need to know personally and experientially that the Lord still makes a way where there seems to be no way! And He does. But our "bag it and grab it" culture filled with "fast food" lifestyles has also cultivated an impatience in us toward the often slow, careful and calculated patience and progress of God's working in our lives.

The natural world of seeds provides us with a rich illustration. Some seeds sown take only a short season to germinate and grow while others may take years before there are any noticeable results from the planting. Be encouraged by the fruit that comes in a short season and don't be discouraged when fruit is long in the making.

Sowing and reaping is about more than money. It's about life. It's about the very lives we live and the tragedy of our day is that so much emphasis is placed on "sowing to get for ourselves" when the overwhelming evidence in Scripture is that we sow for the sake of Christ and the good of the Kingdom of God.

(C) 2001 - Dave Kralik

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