Know Your Season to Plow
“Those too lazy to plow in the right season will have no food at the harvest.”
It’s winter in Maryland, so being outside taking care of my lawn or attempting to garden is not on my to-do list. The cold and I don’t really get along. I stare at the dried-up leaves left from the fall and think, “Eh, they’ll be alright!” I’m sure my HOA will be sending me a notice in the mail about those leaves, but until I have to, or it gets warmer, I’m not going to deal with those leaves.
Though I may not be a fan of colder temperatures, apparently, some farmers get busy in the fall and winter. This is prime plowing season! Being a city girl, I had to do some farming research to understand why. Here are some of the things I learned:
“Late fall and winter plowing destroys weeds and many insects.” (Source)
“The turning under of large amounts of organic matter is likely to result in better decomposition when done in the fall, since autumn and early winter soil temperatures are higher than those of late winter or early spring, and there is more time for the process to take place.” (Source)
Plowing is a part of a process intended to bring forth a good harvest in the harvesting season (usually August into autumn). But what happens if, like me, you didn’t want to go outside in the cold to plow? The Scriptures tell us!
“Those too lazy to plow in the right season will have no food at the harvest.” (Proverbs 20:4, NLT)
Well, dang! But I like food, Jesus!
Toward the end of this past year, I had a few coaching calls from women who wanted to know what they needed to do to market their ministry or book more speaking opportunities at women’s retreats. I gave them the same answer: God is the one who opens those doors for you to be a vessel for His message. But what you can do now is prepare so that you can walk through them when the doors open.
With the introduction of social media and “Christian influencers,” we take in a lot of business and marketing advice about building our platform and our audience. And that’s fine for the business world. I know that world. I ran a design firm for over a decade, where I built brands and advised clients on strategy. But in ministry, as women of God, going down that road is not only costly in time and money, it often can lead to loads of pride and a constant need for the approval of others. Trust me, I speak from experience! I’m still paying off thousands of dollars of debt from business-building courses and content creation because it is what I would do as a business owner. However, every opportunity God has given me to minister to others across the country and world has come from God prompting a fellow Christian who has seen the fruit of my life to recommend me to a ministry. Some of those ministries didn’t even see my fancy marketing materials.
After learning the hard way, my advice is to know your season to plow and get to it. For those called to minister to others, the plowing season may look like identifying the message He has given you and the audience for that message. It may look like being diligent in your writing and posting so that when someone is interested in a message from the Lord through you, you have something to share with them. And it definitely looks like building your own spiritual habits of sitting in the Word of God, letting the Holy Spirit deposit a message in your heart, and communicating with God through prayer.
Whatever God is calling you to build, whether it is ministering in or outside of your home, keep plowing so you can produce a God-sized harvest in your family, community, and world. And just like in farming, plowing is seasonal, so this won’t be the only time for you to plow.
Prayer Starter
Father, give me wisdom and discernment to know the season I am in. Help me shake off the temptations to be lazy when I need to be plowing. Help me be obedient to your call. I want to see Your harvest, and I want to be ready when You call me into action. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Dig Deeper
Galatians 6:9, “So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” (NLT)
Leviticus 26:3-5, “If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you the seasonal rains. The land will then yield its crops, and the trees of the field will produce their fruit. Your threshing season will overlap with the grape harvest, and your grape harvest will overlap with the season of planting grain. You will eat your fill and live securely in your own land.” (NLT)
Reflections
What does plowing in this season look like for you? What kind of harvest do you want to see God produce in your life?
Let us hear from you! Add your thoughts about this devotion in the comments.
