We Reap in a Different Season than we Sow.

Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.  Galatians 6:9-10

Just as there are physical laws in life, there are spiritual laws as well called the Laws of the Harvest. Last week we began with Laws 1 and 2, What We Did Not Sow and We Reap in the Same Kind as we Sow.   This week we will look at the remaining 5 laws starting with Law 3:
We Reap in a Different Season than we Sow. 

What we sow, we reap, but the thing that is so deceptive is that we reap in a different season. So, what is a season? For our purposes today, a season in our life is a time frame that has been allotted for something to happen...which affects the future.
It is absurd to think we could plant squash seeds this morning and eat fried squash for lunch. But how often do we live our lives trying to sow and harvest in the same season? The harvest never comes immediately after planting because, while the earth abides, there is seedtime and harvest, winter and summer, etc. There are seasons to life and the harvest never comes immediately.

Rome was not built in a day. Plants don't grow overnight. Athletes don't become strong or proficient in a week. Children aren't matured overnight. Wisdom isn't gained overnight, and so it goes throughout all of life.  The "in due season" Principle is:  at the appropriate, appointed time - men will reap that which they have sown, whether good or bad. This is really about the choices we make now that affect our future.

SOME OBSERVATIONS ABOUT THE SEASONS OF LIFE:

1.  Life is Full of Change, but Not of Chance - Life isn’t really random after all. We experience many things in life because God, in His complete sovereignty,  has ordained all of them for our lives...the bad, the difficult and the painful as well as the pleasant, the comfortable and the delightful. It all comes from the hand of God, even when none of it makes sense to us. And it is all for a reason. It is all part of a plan, not chaotic happenstance that amazingly comes together

2.    Life Can Be Glimpsed but Not Grasped - God created every man with a sense that there is more to this life than just the kind of chaotic life that we live out day to day.  Unfortunately, once we recognize that there is a God and that all that occurs in our lives is under His control, our humanity takes over once again and we want to try to "figure out" God and "figure out" our lives. But as humans all we can ever do is get a glimpse of the course of human affairs - we will never get a grasp. No matter how hard we work, no matter how much we study, we are incapable of understanding God's grand design even for our own lives. The problem is that we can never step back far enough to view everything the way God does.  He sees the beginning and the end and the everything in between.  We can only see what is right before us.  This is where the blind faith and trust in Him comes in. 

3. Life Can Be Managed But Not Manipulated - The effort to try and manipulate the seasons of our lives in order to gain some advantage or profit in our lives "under the sun" is futile.  God has His seasons. We can't manipulate life and the seasons of life for our own benefit or profit. We don't get to determine when we experience these various seasons. That is completely in God's hands

Even though we cannot control life or figure it out, we are still responsible for how we respond to life. We must manage our lives in a way that is consistent with the guidance that God has given to us in his Word. This law is one of the hardest laws to accept because we may pour ourselves into something – like our children – and then not see the overall harvest for years and years or maybe not even in our lifetime.  We see little benefits along the way but sometimes it is not until they are fully grown, functioning adults that we get to see the fruits of our labor.  But this is what God has called us to do; to persevere through the seasons of life, even when we don’t quickly see the fruits of our labors. 

Scripture to Claim:
Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until [a]it gets the early and late rains. 8 You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. LORD; Be strong, and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD. James 5:7-8