How to Reap a Good Harvest

“Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the LORD, that He may come and shower righteousness upon you.” 
Hosea 10:12 (NLT)

The law of the harvest is simple.  You reap what you sow.  So, what are you planting? In Galatians 6:7-9 (NIV), the Bible says, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

Hosea gives us three simple action steps for reaping a good harvest.

Planting: When it comes to planting, you have a choice.  It’s a huge choice because it will determine what you reap.  If there’s any question about what you’ve planted, you only have to look at the harvest.  The prophet Hosea challenges us to plant the good seeds of righteousness by telling us what we will reap – and you will harvest a crop of love.  This works in our relationship with God and others.  Treat others right, and they will usually respond in kind.

Plowing: Before we can plant good seeds of righteousness, Hosea says, we need to prepare the soil of our hearts.  “Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, ….”  Why?  Because, like hard ground, the soil of our hearts can become hardened by pride, selfishness, unforgiveness, and bitterness. Seeds of righteousness can’t grow in that kind of soil.  Are you experiencing that kind of crop in your marriage garden? In your relationship with God and others? 

Pursuing: How do we plow up the hard ground of our hearts?  Because I’m a pastor, I’ll give you a third word that begins with a “P”: PURSUE. Hosea puts it like this, “…for now is the time to seek the LORD” (Hosea 10:12d, NLT).

Plant, Plow, and Pursue.  These three action steps are essential if we are to experience the fullness of God, the depth of love, and overflowing joy in our relationships. They enable us to plant “good seeds of righteousness” so that we can “harvest a crop of love.”  Isn’t that what we all want?  Pursuing God with all our hearts means to “seek” Him.  When we seek the Lord like that, He will come and “shower righteousness” on us.

---

To read this devotional online or catch up on past ones, visit https://kerryshook.org/blog.

Another important part of your daily devotional is spending time with God in prayer. The Woodlands Church Prayer Board lists prayer requests submitted by our members and provides a way to send them some encouragement by using a button on the page to let them know that you prayed for them. Whether you use the Prayer Board or pray from your heart, the goal is to build the habit of incorporating prayer into your quiet time.

Need prayer yourself? Let us know by submitting a prayer request on the Woodlands Church Prayer Board.