Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”
Our Bible verse for today: “Remember this: the person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously.” 2 Corinthians 9:6 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Don’t limit yourself by being selfish.”
The fear of not having enough causes people to cling to what they have rather than sharing with others. But in 2 Corinthians 9:6 the Apostle Paul reminds us of one of the great principles of life in the kingdom of God – the law of sowing and reaping. In God’s world you reap according to what you sow, and you reap according to how much you sow.
If you plant good seed you will reap a good harvest; if you plant bad seed you will reap a bad harvest. If you plant wheat, you will reap wheat; if you plant weeds you’ll grow weeds. This principle carries over into all of life. If you are mean to people they won’t like you. If you are dishonest then they won’t trust you. You reap the results of what you sow. The law of sowing and reaping also plays out in quantity. If you plant a lot of seed you can expect to grow a big harvest. If you skimp on the seeds, the resulting harvest will be sparse.
In the specific context of 2 Corinthians 9:6 Paul was applying this principle to the generous giving of money. He was teaching that if you are generous financially with those in need, God will find ways to bless you abundantly in return. That abundant blessing might come in material terms, such as someone else being even more generous with you than you were with the other person, but His blessings might also be in the form of spiritual blessings. The simple fact is that you can’t out-give God. If you sow generously He will find ways to bless you abundantly in return.
However this principle also applies to more than just the giving of money. As we have already discussed several times in this devotional series, God wants us to consecrate all that we have and all that we are to Him. That pertains to money, but also to time, talents, skills, abilities, and everything else. In terms of sowing and reaping this means that we eagerly and joyfully pour our entire life (all that we have and all that we are) into serving God and serving others in His name. In others words, “we are all in!”
When we approach life that way God takes what we have to offer, adds His unlimited capacity to it, and produces wonderful things in and through us that would not have been possible had we not been “all in”. This is the law of sowing and reaping lived out fully in the life of a dedicated follower of Christ.
When you live that way you no longer wrestle with the fear of not having enough because first of all, you simply don’t think that way anymore. But also, you don’t have to fear not having enough because you know God will take care of you. The principle of sowing and reaping is real and it works. Give it all to God and trust Him for the results.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 