Dear One,
“Sow.Your.Seed!” So said the wise man, Solomon in Ecclesiastes 11:6.
But I resist his wisdom.
Last week I didn’t want to sow my seed. I wanted to protect it. I wanted to hold it, not release it. I wanted to take it back home for safe-keeping, put it in a jar on the shelf so I’d know where and how it was – so I could preserve its life and send appreciative glances its way.
Sowing seed is risky and terrifically unknown. When I cast my seed it is literally and figuratively out of my hands, gone from my sight, out of my control and will most likely die. I’m not a fan of any of that.
The Apostle Paul wrote to his people:
“My dear, dear friends … always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, and don’t hold back. Know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain, not futile, not wasted, and never without purpose.”
1 Corinthians 15:58 (multi-translation)
Paul nailed it for me. He linked my desire to hold back with my struggle to believe my labors matter.
Vain means: Empty. Ineffective. Hollow. Amounting to zero. Of no value.
When I feel that way (and let’s be honest, it happens!), why sow? Why risk all of this? Why not just close up shop and head home and save that precious seed?
But (and there’s always a but), what if Solomon and Paul are truly wise? What if they’re right? What if sowing who we are and what we have matters a great deal?
“Get up early to sow your seed and in the evening find worthwhile things to do. For you never know which will profit you—maybe this, maybe that, maybe both.” Ecclesiastes 11:6 (Voice)
You never know what’s gonna grow, so take your seed, go out and sow!
Sow.Your.Seed: Our Little Life Words of the week.
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DEEPER DIVE
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Ponder:
- What, why, and when do you hold back?
Practice:
- It’s Spring, so plant something and watch it grow.
Play:
- Our song of the week is so joy-filled!: Planting Seeds by Empty Hands Music. Be sure to listen to the end (past the credits).
Pray:
- Ask God to “provide and multiply the resources you invest and produce an abundant harvest from your righteous actions” (2 Corinthians 9:10 Voice).
Sow your seed. Your seed. Not someone else’s, yours.
Friend, hear me: Your work is not in vain. It matters. You matter. Take heart, neither are lost.