Garden Talk

In the movie Hunt For Red October, a Soviet submarine shoots a torpedo at the October to destroy it. Shawn Conery in some shrewd tactics sped up and drove right into the torpedo that was headed toward them. By shortening the distance before the bomb made impact it just shattered into pieces without ever exploding. This was due to a safety measure built in the torpedo to not have it arm itself till it was a certain distance away from where it was fired from. To make sure this didn't happen again, the captain of the Soviet sub had the safety measures removed. Long story short, the October out maneuvered them again and the missile circled back into the Soviet sub that fired it. The last words heard from the Soviet sub before it blew up was the lieutenant yelling at the captain, “You're arrogant! You killed us!!”

This reminded me of the biblical principle in Galatians, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7) The captain definitely reaped what he sowed in this case. This warning Paul gives us is one we need to reflect on more often. So many times we have hang ups, trials, annoyances or problems that have such a negative impact in our lives. And when we do, we get frustrated, anxious, angry or scared. We look where to place blame or cry out to God “why?”. Yet what we often don’t stop to think is, “Could I be having this present issue because of me?” We love to place blame with our problems and the world is there to tell us that it’s ok to play the victim. Yet, how much of what we are facing is because of us? What kind of seeds are we planting in our lives? Do we realize the seeds we are planting in our lives? Are we even noticing the weeds in our garden that are there because of us?!  This is not something always so easy to see. Also, the fruits of those seeds (good or bad) may not sprout forth life for a long time.

In my secular job, I had a student I was training that was very social. He loved to talk. He was always making comments, chatting with those sitting next to him and was eager to respond to any questions I asked. When it came time to take a test he was flustered. He didn’t understand anything. It was like reading another language. He failed so miserably that he walked out. But looking back you could see that he reaped what he sowed. He planted seeds of not focusing, not paying attention, not talking about what mattered and he failed.

But it is not always so easy to pick up. Sometimes it is not actions that sow a bad crop, but our attitude. I had another student that from the first day, never thought she could do the job (I always wondered why she ever applied then). She never worked in an office before. She was very negative and had a can NOT do attitude. She never gave herself a chance. She was a good student, but just never believed she could do it. I was not surprised when the company eventually let her go. She reaped what she sowed. She convinced herself she couldn't do it, so…she didn't!

It can be like that with our walk with God so much. We harvest so many terrible plants in our garden and then wonder why things smell so rotten around us. You are struggling with sin so much, but it is really because you planted a seed of hardly spending time with God. You reap what you sow. Or maybe you are so busy, you desire to come to church more or read your bible more or pray more, but there is never any time. It is probably because we planted a seed long ago to not make Him a priority and learn to say no to other things to keep Him a priority. We reap what we sow. Or maybe you are lonely. No one wants to be friends or super close with you and have deep Christian fellowship with you. But maybe it is because you are an introvert and never start conversations. You just hope that something “happens”. Or maybe your attitude puts people off; you are always negative, or maybe you are assertive and domineering, or you gossip a lot and can’t be trusted or you're sarcastic and can never be taken seriously. Who wants to be friends and really trust anyone like that? We reap what we sow. Then there is the weakness you feel against the enemy. You fall so easily. You never seem to have a chance. Perhaps it is because you planted some seeds of never putting your armor on like God had told you to (Ephesians 6:11). A football player can not complain that the opposing team hurt him when runs out onto the field without his helmet on. We reap what we sow. Then there are those sinful thoughts that you are battling. You can never seem to get them out of your head. Yet you are watching garbage on TV that is putting evil and sinful things into your mind. Garbage in, garbage out. Or, you reap what you sow.

We must not always be reactive but proactive. We must be planting good seeds in our lives if we are to expect good things to come of what we do. Is everything that is bad in our life our fault? No, absolutely not. There are trials and bad circumstances that happen that are completely out of our control. But I think we bring about more problems than we realize. We keep planting fungus in our lives and expect a berry bush to come up from the ground. You get out of your life what you put into it. And this is not some pop psychology or TED talk. This is a biblical principle Even how you respond to any conviction in your heart from reading this will determine what you end up reaping. So be proactive. You reap what you sow. Start focusing on what is important and plant the seeds that will reap a harvest to the glory of God.