God’s Laws of Sowing and Reaping

You will have more joy than you dreamed possible when you live to give

I’ve never seen a farmer plant his crop and then worry day and night.  No, he waits with a knowing, with a confidence.  He doesn’t necessarily hope that it will happen, or even believe that it will happen.  He takes it one step further.  He knows that his harvest is on its way.  You know that you know that you know – just like the farmer – that your harvest is on its way.

If you want to experience a new level of God’s joy, if you want him to pour out His blessings and favor in your life, then you’re going to have to get your mind off yourself.  You must learn to be a giver and not a taker.  

God created us to be givers and you will never be truly fulfilled as a human being until you learn the simple secret of how to give your life away.  

When I’m tempted to be upset or worried, or when I lose my joy, the first thing I ask myself is, “What am I focused on?  Where is the emphasis?  What am I thinking about?  Nine times out of ten I’m thinking about my problems.  I’m thinking about some concern or frustration in my life.  I’m thinking about what I must do tomorrow.  When I get all caught up in me, it’s a formula for depression and discouragement.  We must learn to get our focus off ourselves.  The late singer Keith Green said it well, “It’s so hard to see when my eyes are on me.”  

One of the best things you can do if you’re having a problem is to help solve somebody else’s problem.  If you want your dreams to come to pass, help someone else fulfill his or her dreams.  Start sowing some seeds so God can bring you a harvest.  When we meet other people’s needs, God always meets our needs.  

You’ve got to sow some seeds.  We were created to give, not to simply please ourselves.  If you miss that truth, you will miss the abundant, overflowing, joy-filled life that God has in store for you.

When you reach out to other people in need, God will make sure that your own needs are supplied.  You need to sow some seed so God can bring you a harvest.  If you’re struggling financially, go out and help somebody who has less than you have.  

If you’ll dare to take your mind off your troubles, get your mind off your own needs and, instead, seek to be a blessing to other people, God will do more for you than you can ask or think.

It’s easy to criticize and condemn, to point out everyone’s flaws and failures.  But God wants us to build people up, to be a blessing, speaking words of faith and victory into their lives.

If you get your mind off of your problems and begin to help others, you won’t have to worry about your needs.  God will take care of them for you.  Something supernatural happens when we get our eyes off ourselves and turn them to the needs of those around us.

The Old Testament teaches, “When you feed the hungry, when you clothe the naked, when you encourage the oppressed, then your life is going to break forth like the dawn.  Then your healing is going to quickly come.”  In other words, when you reach out to hurting people, that’s when God is going to make sure that your needs are supplied.  When you focus on being a blessing, God makes sure that you are always blessed in abundance.

I’m convinced that many people would receive the miracle they have been praying about if they would simply turn their attention away from themselves, away from their own needs and problems, and start to focus on being a blessing to other people.  All too often we spend most of our time trying to be blessed.  “God what can you do for me?  God, here’s my prayer list.  Can I have it by next Tuesday?

We should concentrate more on being a blessing than trying to be blessed.  We need to look for opportunities to share God’s love, his gifts and His goodness with others.  The truth is, the more you help others, the more that God will make sure that you are helped.  

Remember, we will reap what we sow.  When we do good for other people, that’s when God is going to make sure that His abundant blessings overtake you.  If you want to live your best life now, you must develop a lifestyle of giving; living to give instead of living to get.  Have an attitude that says, who can I bless today? rather than how can I get blessed today?

Sadly, monkeys are not alone when it comes to selfishness.  Many people live like that, too.  They live with their hands clenched.  They are so focused on holding on to what they have, they don’t realize that it is robbing them of the freedom and the abundant blessings that God has in store for them.  They are selfish with their money, with their resources and with their time.  

How about you?  Are you so focused on getting what you want, what you need, that you don’t obey that still, small voice when God tells you to bless others?  Open your hands, don’t hold on so tightly.  God will not fill a closed fist with good things.  Be a giver, rather than a taker.  You won’t have to look far before you find someone you can help.  There’s a whole world out there that’s crying out for help.  You have an opportunity to live unselfishly, displaying the character of God.  God is a giver, and you are never more like God than when you give.

God promised Abraham, “I will bless you with abundant increase of favors and make your name famous and distinguished, and you will be a blessing.”  We often read such promises and say, “All right God!  Come on, pour out your blessings on me!”  But notice, there’s a catch.  We must do something, better yet, we must be something.  God is implying we will not be blessed simply so we can live lavishly or self-indulgently.  We will be blessed to be a blessing.   Indeed, unless we are willing to be a blessing, God will not pour out His favor and goodness in our lives.  We will receive from God in the same measure we give to others.  

It all depends on your attitude.  You must be faithful in the little you have right now before God will bless you with more.  A lot of people say, “God, when are you going to bless me?”  But if we’d listen more carefully, maybe we’d hear God saying, “When are you going to start being a blessing?”  

(Example of Saudi king P. 229…)  The principles of giving are spiritual principles.  They work regardless of nationality, skin color, or even religion.  If you give unselfishly, it is going to be given back to you.  If you meet other people’s needs, God will make sure your own needs are supplied in abundance.  

The Bible says, “When you help the Lord, you are lending to the Lord.”  That Saudi man has developed a lifestyle of giving, especially to the poor, and not surprisingly, that which he sows comes back to him exponentially.  He has lent to God by helping the poor, and God will not be in debt to any person.  

You have to start right where you are.  You must be faithful with what you have, then God will trust you with more.  

The closest thing to the heart of God is helping hurting people.  God loves when we sing and when we pray.  He loves when we come together to celebrate His goodness.  But nothing pleases God any more than when we take care of one of His children.  Jesus said, “If you even give as much as a cup of water to somebody in need, I see it and I’m going to reward you.”  He said, “Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.”

John Bunyan said in The Pilgrims Progress, “You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who cannot pay you back.”  

If you really want to thrive, you must learn to be a giver.  The Scripture says, “Whatsoever a man sows, that he will also reap.”  All through the Bible, we find the principle of sowing and reaping.  Just as a farmer must plant some seed if he hopes to reap the harvest, we, too, must plant some good seed in the fields of our families, careers, businesses and personal relationships.  

That’s the principle God established.  In the same way, if we want to reap good things, we too must sow some good seeds.  

If you want to reap financial blessings, you must sow financial seeds in the lives of others.  If you want to reap friendships, you should sow a seed and be a friend.  The seed always has to lead.

The reason many people are not reaping is because they are not sowing.  They are living self-centered lives.  Unless they change their focus and start reaching out to others, they will probably remain in that condition.  

If you’re down and discouraged today, don’t sit around feeling sorry for yourself.  Go find somebody to cheer up.  

Scripture says there are two things we must do in times of trouble.  First, we must trust in the Lord; and second, we must go out and do something good.  Go out and sow some seeds.

If you’ll start sowing those seeds of friendship, God will bring somebody great into your life.  When you make other people happy, God will make sure that your life is filled with joy.  

We need to be more seed-oriented than need-oriented.  In your time of need, don’t sit around thinking about what you lack.  Think about what kind of seed you can sow to get yourself out of that need.  

An intriguing Scripture verse says, “It is possible to give away and become richer! It is also possible to hold on too tightly and lose everything.  Yes, the liberal man shall be rich!  By watering others, he waters himself.  

If you will focus on giving generously to others, God will make sure your own life is refreshed, even if you must go through a dry, dreary wilderness.  

We should get up each day looking for ways to help others.  If you will do that, the Bible says God’s blessings will chase you down and overtake you.  

I’ve made up my mind, I’m going to be a giver in life.  I’m going to do something good.  I’m looking for some opportunities to sow some seeds.  Why?  I’ve simply learned that planting seeds works!  And I want to make sure that I keep my harvest coming in, in a big way.  

Learn to stretch your faith.  Do something out of the ordinary. 
If you want an extraordinary harvest, sow an extraordinary seed.  

If you normally give ten percent of your income, stretch your faith a bit and give eleven percent.  Get a little more seed in the ground and watch what God will do.    The Scripture says, “For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”  In other words, if you give with a teaspoon, it’s going to be given back to you with a teaspoon.  If you give with a shovel, it’s going to be given back to you with a shovel.  And if you give with a dump truck, you’re going to get back dump truck loads of blessings in your life!

The Bible clearly says, “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.”  If you’re not satisfied with where you are in life, increase the amount of seed that you are sowing.  The size of your harvest depends on the amount of your seed.  

TITHE
Understand, sowing seed is not a replacement for tithing.  In fact, it is usually when you give over and above the first ten percent of your income that this principle kicks into high gear.  The Bible says, “The tithe is the Lord’s.  And it is holy.”  That means the first tenth of your income does not belong to you.  It belongs to God and should be given to your local church.  When you hold onto it, you’re really robbing from God.  So if you’re not sowing at all, the tithe is a good place to start!

You may be thinking, Joel, I just can’t afford to tithe!  No, the truth is you can’t afford not to tithe.  First, it would be foolish to try and rob God; and second, you need to get some seed in the ground.  If you will dare to take a step of faith and start honoring God in your finances, He’ll start increasing your supply in supernatural ways.  God will take that 90% you have left over, and He’ll cause it to go further than the 100% with which you started.  

The Scripture says that when we tithe, God not only opens up the windows of heaven, but He will rebuke the devourer for your sake.  That means He’ll keep the enemy off your money, off your crop, off your children, and away from your home.  He’ll make sure you get promoted.  He’ll cause you to get the best deals in life.  Sometimes, He’ll keep you from sickness, accidents and harm that might cause other unnecessary expenses.  All kinds of blessings come your way when you honor God in the area of your finances.  

On the other hand, you can’t rob God and expect Him to bless you at the same time.  God abides by the laws that He has established, and if you don’t sow, you will not reap.  It’s as simple as that.  

The Scripture is not ambiguous about this matter.  It says, “In everything you do, put God first, and He will direct you and crown your efforts with success.”  If you want to prosper in your finances, put God first.  If you want to prosper in your business, put God first.  When you honor God, God will always honor you.  And it’s interesting, the only place in the Bible where God tells us to prove Him – which means to test Him, or check Him out – is in the area of our finances.  If you will be faithful and show God that you’re trustworthy with what you have right now, there’s no limit to what God will do in your life.  

The Dead Sea has no outlet, the water reeks with a wretched smell.  All the fresh water flowing into it becomes stagnant; it is undrinkable, polluted and putrid.  

That is a good picture of a person who lives selfishly, who is a taker but not a giver.  God did not create us to be a reservoir that only collects.  He created us to be a river that’s constantly flowing.  When we live selfishly, always receiving, always taking but never giving, we become stagnant and polluted.  Putting it bluntly, our lives will start to stink.  We’ll go around with a sour attitude, we’ll be no fun to be around, always irritable and hard to get along with.  And it’s all because nothing is flowing out of us.  Yes, God wants to pour good things into your life, but if you want to live your best life now, you must learn to allow those good things to flow through you to others.  As you do, your supply will be replenished and your life will maintain its freshness.  

You must keep your river flowing.  That’s the way to truly prosper in life and be happy.  

(But I have a lot of difficult issues in my life right now.  When I get out of these problems, then I’ll go help somebody else…)  You have it backward.  Go help someone else first, then God will begin to turn your situation around.  Remember the fundamental principle: You must sow the seed first, then you will reap a harvest.  

If you want the best stress relief of all, get your mind off yourself and go help somebody else.  Something supernatural happens when we turn our attention away from our own needs to the needs of others.  God’s supernatural power seems to be activated by unselfish gestures.  When you have a problem, don’t concentrate on your need, think about what kind of seed you can sow to get out of that problem.

The Scripture records, “In the midst of their great trouble, they stayed full of joy and they gave generously to others.”  Notice they sowed a seed in their time of need.  

If you will sow an extraordinary seed, you will reap an extraordinary harvest.   She rose up in faith and sowed a seed in her time of need, and God supernaturally increased her.

Are you giving God anything to work with?  If not, start planning and start planting

The Bible says, “Give generously, for your gifts will return to you later.  Divide your gifts among many, for in the days ahead you yourself may need much help.”  

You may not have any pressing needs today.  That’s great!  But don’t let that stop you from giving.  You need to prepare for the future.  When you do have a need, God will be right there to help you out.  Giving is similar to taking a preventive medicine.  You are storing up God’s promises.  

God is keeping a record of every good deed that you have done.  He’s keeping a record of every seed that you have ever sown.  You may think it went unnoticed, but God saw it.  And in your time of need, He will make sure that somebody is there to help you.  

Are you living to give or are you living to get?  Our gifts, our acts of kindness, get God’s attention in a special way.  The Living Bible says, “Your prayers and charities have not gone unnoticed by God!”  

When we give, it gets God’s attention.  I’m not suggesting that we can buy miracles.  I’m not saying you have to pay God to meet your needs, but I am saying that God sees your gifts.  He sees your acts of kindness.  Every time that you help somebody, God sees it.  And as with Cornelius, it pleases God when you give, and He will pour out His favor in a new way in your life.  

Sow a special seed that relates to your specific need.  We can’t buy God’s goodness, but we can exercise our faith through our giving.  

Every time God puts a bigger dream in Victoria’s and my hearts, every time he enlarges our vision, after we pray about it, we sow a seed in faith.  We may just sow a seed by giving our time to some project, or maybe we’ll sow a special offering, maybe we’ll just bless a person in a special way.  But we do something to put some faith behind our prayers.  

(Instead of paying extra on their mortgage payment to get their mortgage paid down, they took the extra money and sowed it as a seed, believing for God’s favor…)  Because we sowed a seed in faith, God not only bought us a buyer, but he did more than we could ask or think.  He gave us even more than we were hoping for.  That’s just how God operates.  

God is our provider and the good news is God is not having a down year.  I’m happy to report the economy in heaven is doing just fine! 

God is keeping the records.  He sees every seed you’ve ever sown.  What you sow, you will reap.

It’s just a matter of time before you reap your harvest for the seeds you’ve sown.  

God has an abundant life in store for each one of us.  

You should never rule out the power of supernatural increase.  God can bring one opportunity across your path that will thrust you to a new level.  He has explosive blessings that can blast you out of debt and into abundance.  

The question is, “Whose report will you believe?”  With men it may be impossible, but with God all things are possible.  

You may be planning on an average year, but God has lined up an extraordinary year.  You’re planning on getting by, but God is planning on abundance.  He’s planning on overflow.

Develop a thriving mentality.  Deep down we know that even when we’re in the desert, even when things are slow financially, even when we get a negative report, God is still on the throne.  Our job is not our source.  The economy is not our source.  God is our source.  

The Scripture says, “When we give, God is able to make it all up to us by giving us everything we need and more so that there will not only be enough for our needs, but we will have plenty left over so that we can give joyfully to others.”  God has promised us that as we give, He will give back to us, then add some more.  

Do something out of the ordinary as an expression of your faith.  If you do this, your gift will go up as a memorial before God.  He’ll begin to pour out His favor in a new way.  

If you want to live your best life now, don’t hoard what God has given you.  Learn to sow it in faith.  Remember, when you give, you are preparing the way for God to meet your needs.

Misc Nuggets – various authors