A Season of Harvest
October 20
The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.
Matthew 9:37
Ben paused to listen as the October winds rustled the corn stalks, thinking, I love this time of year!
His tooth-revealing smile, hidden behind a camouflage mask, testified to the depth of fulfillment he was experiencing. The explorer inside was being unleashed! The explosion of color! Clear, crisp air, and such fiery sunsets! It’s hard to imagine anything more beautiful than this river valley!
Ben always felt closer to God when he ventured into the woods. Here he could see God’s handiwork. He could almost hear God pronounce, “You were meant to have dominion over this. Take good care of it; this is practice for your future home.” He was moved by the variety of wildlife and brilliant foliage.
Ben had been a bowhunter for over thirty years. In the sphere of three decades he’d spent thousands of hours in the woods; here he was aware of a godly connection he rarely sensed anywhere else.
Ben considered himself a good steward of nature. He hunted because he enjoyed it, yet he also knew that maintaining the animal population was necessary because of the limited carrying capacity of the surrounding countryside. Even more treasured than being entrusted with this responsibility was the sense of God’s looming presence as he sat silently, watching this wonder-filled world within a world unfold before him.
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Consider this parallel to the seasons of our lives: winter...God cleanses us through understanding; spring…He brings renewal; summer…God propagates and grows the planted seed; fall...our mature fruit is revealed for the purpose of sharing!
There is significance in each. But fall is when the sickle is put to the crop.
As we look about, we see those who have not yet named the Name of Jesus. They may be in the fall of their lives, not because of age, but because their time to decide is running out.
God says to each of us, “Take time out of your schedule to experience the Spirit of this season. Then go to the harvest fields!”
Prayer
“Cleanse my life, Lord, renew a right spirit in me, propagate the seeds You have planted, and mature the fruit in my life that I might be prepared for the harvest. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”
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