I’m finally reaping the harvest of my garden. Thirty
cucumbers or more every other day, tomatoes, peppers, the watermelons are about
one and a half feet long (no I’m not telling you where I live!). It occurred to
me that I had to water about every other day to make sure the crops survived
during the hot, dry weather. The yard still hasn’t recovered even with the
three inches of rain.
The Bible has much to
say about rain. Consider Deuteronomy 11:13-14 says, “It shall come about, if
you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to
love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul,
that He will give the rain for your land in its season, the early and late
rain, that you may gather in your grain and your new wine and your oil.” Isaiah
55:10 says, “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not
return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout, and
furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater.”
Hebrews 6:7-8 says,
“For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth
vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a
blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and
close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.”
In the agricultural
culture of yesteryear, rain meant the difference between being fed or staving.
It still does in many countries. The reason I
bring this up is not I’m enjoying the vegetables that took the extra care and
concern to get them to produce. How much more we should
give extra effort (care and concern) to see a person thrive instead of just
survive. We should look out for the interests of others and not just our own
(see Phil. 2:4). I know it takes encouragement from you and expenditure of time
and effort, but the crop will be worth the return. Think of the difference you
can make in the outcome of another person’s life. What if someone is in Heaven
because of you? Is it any wonder Jesus called Himself “living water” (John
4:10). Our job is to point people to Him.
And by the way, come by in
about a month and we’ll have a piece of watermelon. Until next time.
—Alan
(All references are NASB)
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