Seasons

I know that I've mentioned plowing before, but felt like expanding on it just a little, so please indulge my whimsy! Last summer in Perfume, Germany, our missionary there, "Jamie (pronounced Hi-me) Sanchez," taught us about seasons. We talked at length about how a farmer plows his field until the soil is ready, and that might take days, or even weeks. He compared plowing to praying, and how, through prayer, we are preparing the soil for planting (sharing the Good News), reaping (bringing someone to Christ), and vintaging (discipling). Every day, we would go to our ministry site and plow the ground by prayer walking (praying on-sight with in-sight!) for about an hour. God amazed us by showing us thigs to pray for that we never would have seen had we not been plowing. By the end of the week, some of the really hard "soil" had been prepared for planting because God honored our plowing. It was such a simple thing, yet so overlooked. The teaching resounds in my mind, and yet I still have a hard time spending the right amount of time plowing. I tend to be a planter, reaper, and vintager. That means sharing, bringing to Christ, and discipling. I need to do more plowing. The soil of people's lives will be made ripe when the hard pieces are broken, and the small pockets are churned. The seeds of planting will take root when the soil has been turned and longs to find the seeds of the Gospel message. Starting today, I'm going to be an avid plower. Without it, none of the other is possible!