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Change the Seeds to Change the Harvest
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men. Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, as Shalman spoiled Betharbel in the day of battle: the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.”
Hosea 10:12–14
California is one of the great agricultural regions of the world. Billions of dollars worth of fruit and vegetables that are grown in our state are shipped across the country and around the world, feeding millions of people. Every farmer knows exactly what crop he is going to harvest. He does not know when he plants how much rain will fall, how hot the sun will be, or whether his harvest will be excellent, average or poor. But he does know what he will be harvesting, because he knows what he planted.
God has ordered and established the world from creation with the principle of sowing and reaping firmly in place. “And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so” (Genesis 1:11). Every harvest is determined by the seed. Many people do not like the painful harvest that follows sin and disobedience, but they are unwilling to plant righteousness.
There is no alternative plan available. You will reap whatever you choose to sow. The only place we can make an effective choice is at the beginning of the process. Every person who laments the bitter harvest of evil consequences that follows wicked living has only himself to blame. Likewise those who plant obedience can confidently expect blessing to follow.
Hosea 10:12–14
California is one of the great agricultural regions of the world. Billions of dollars worth of fruit and vegetables that are grown in our state are shipped across the country and around the world, feeding millions of people. Every farmer knows exactly what crop he is going to harvest. He does not know when he plants how much rain will fall, how hot the sun will be, or whether his harvest will be excellent, average or poor. But he does know what he will be harvesting, because he knows what he planted.
God has ordered and established the world from creation with the principle of sowing and reaping firmly in place. “And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so” (Genesis 1:11). Every harvest is determined by the seed. Many people do not like the painful harvest that follows sin and disobedience, but they are unwilling to plant righteousness.
There is no alternative plan available. You will reap whatever you choose to sow. The only place we can make an effective choice is at the beginning of the process. Every person who laments the bitter harvest of evil consequences that follows wicked living has only himself to blame. Likewise those who plant obedience can confidently expect blessing to follow.
Today’s Growth Principle:
You cannot reap a harvest of blessing by planting seeds of disobedience and wickedness.
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