Week Thirty One - Sowing for the Harvest

In July, Tom and I spent a long weekend in Cornwall, sharing time with two churches and five missionary families. What a blessing to see God moving there, planting new works, and bringing in more workers. Cornwall is a beautiful part of the country, and well worth a visit. But that wasn't what caught my attention. It was the testimony of one of the missionaries whose ministry underwent a significant transformation during Covid.

Bro Grissom and his wife have served the Lord in several places in England, but a few years ago, the Lord led them to plant a church in the city of Plymouth. They distributed flyers, knocked on doors, and did all the things a missionary does to get a church-plant off the ground, but not much was happening. Then came Covid, and the Lord told Bro. Grissom to begin the Ruth Project. God's instruction was to plant vegetables and give them away. So the soil was tilled, the seeds planted, and God gave the increase.

Bro Grissom has continued the Ruth Project for the past few years, but let me share with you his testimony. At one point, he began to grow weary of the planting and tending. He wasn't enjoying the work of gardening, even though things were growing well. A keen gardener visited his patch and made this statement, "You aren't a very good husbandman."

And the Lord used that comment to challenge Bro. Grissom. He was planting seeds, which were growing, and he was sharing with others, but he had missed the project's purpose. It wasn't about giving away vegetables; it was about reaping a harvest. And that harvest wasn't just the fruit of the ground; it was the souls reached by the Ruth Project.

As he talked with us about sowing seeds and sowing for a harvest, his heart burned with passion to explain the difference, a key difference that enabled a church to get off the ground and begin to grow.

When we sow for the harvest, we tend the seeds more carefully, guard them against pests, create frames for growth, and position them for sunshine. Sowing for the harvest means we are diligent, discerning, and disciplined. Seeds thrown to the ground will often grow, but those tended grow best. 

Perhaps it is time to reflect on the kind of husbandmen we are in God's ministry. Are we guilty of the same? Do we witness carelessly, throwing seed as if it were just something we have to do? Or do we witness with purpose, keeping the door open, leaving open questions that will lead to further opportunity? Do we hand out tracts like we're handing out candy? Or are we praying over the tracts and making sure the ones we distribute have a solid message? Are we sowing for the harvest or just throwing out seed?

Week Thirty - What's Cookin'?

A scripture I had never noticed before was brought to my attention in Dick Brogden's Live/Dead Devotional. Tucked away in 1 Chronicles 9:31, it reads, "And Mattithiah, one of the Levites, who was the firstborn of Shallum the Korahite, had the set office over the things that were made in the pans." Mattithiah was the kitchen manager!

Each Levite had an assigned role or position within the temple. Their tasks varied - some cleaned, some sang, and some, like Mattithiah, were entrusted with cooking.  

Cooking is one of my least favorite tasks. That eternal question, "What's for supper?" is a source of stress for me. Probably because I'm not a foodie. I eat because my body tells me I have to. However, for my husband and children, food is a top priority. We even make jokes about being in a room full of hangry (hungry and angry) Gritts's. It isn't a safe prospect! Therefore, mealtime must be tended to faithfully.

Back in 2019, I wrote about Angels in the Kitchen. This says it all.

"Mutter, mutter, mutter! I hear my heart grumbling as I slap toast into the toaster and wait for the kettle to boil. Slinging silverware to the table, I watch the bacon impatiently while I wait for the family to get downstairs.  “Why do I have to wait on these people hand and foot?  Why do they wait for me to scream up the stairs before they come down?  Can’t they smell the bacon and hear the kettle?”

Just as I get ready to take the cups to the table, the family spills down the stairs with excitement. “Why are they so happy?  Don’t they know how irritated I am being the only one down here getting things ready?” 

“Good morning,” they all chime. 
“Ump,” I groan as I butter the last piece of toast.
Once they are all out the door, I go to my quiet place for some solace and encouragement. It’s been another hard morning, and I am anxious to hear from the Lord.

Hebrews 13 is my reading. “Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” 

“Well,” I thought. “I haven’t entertained strangers this morning, and I’m sure they are not angels.” Then, I heard the Lord reminding me of 1 Peter 4:9, “Use hospitality one to another without grudging.” 

“Okay, okay!”  So, I was a bit grumpy this morning. To be honest, I am grumpy at having to man the kitchen alone. I don’t like cooking. I don’t like the feeling of everyone expecting me to do it with no help. I’m sorry, but it is probably the task I despise most about housework.

I laid aside my Bible and picked up a little book I had been reading. The faded green cover revealed its age, and the writings were short excerpts, so maybe I could find some comfort there to lift my annoyance, but the Lord wasn’t going to let me off that lightly.  My eyes fell on:

  “In one of Murillo’s pictures in the Louvre, he shows us the interior of a convent kitchen; but doing the work there are beautiful white-winged angels instead of mortals in old garments. One shining spirit serenely puts the kettle on the fire, and one is lifting a pail of water with heavenly grace.
   One is reaching plates from the kitchen dresser, and there is also a little cherub running about and getting in the way while trying to help. It all serves to remind us that heaven is about us in our kitchen, and that God may help us with the most menial and humdrum tasks.” 
Adapted from Blessed Be Drudgery by Williams C. Grannett

“Well,” I continued to mutter, “there were no angels helping me today.”  Then, my eyes caught the next short thought in the faded green book, “There can never be a really happy home if there is trouble in the kitchen.”

I was guilty. I knew my bad attitude could spill over to the rest of the house. I wanted a happy home.  I felt I had a happy home, but my heart’s attitude and outward actions in the kitchen revealed something different.

“Lord, forgive me. Help me serve my family as unto you. Forgive me and change my heart and attitude. May my influence be one of genuine hospitality, coming from a heart of love and care. Help my family to overlook and forgive my selfishness and curt impatience. May grace and angelic presence abide in my heart, hearth, and home for your glory.”

Nearby, staring back at me in blank resolve was a tiny, white angel ornament recently made for me by an old friend. Was I going to allow angels into my kitchen?

I took the tiny angel and placed her near the sink as a reminder of my Lord’s instruction. Perhaps tomorrow morning, she will remind me that I am not alone in my kitchen, and serving my family, done as unto the Lord, does not go unnoticed.   

Excerpt from: Good in Everything by H.L. Gee, p 56 

Just as Mattithiah was entrusted with the kitchen, so am I. And the attitude with which I perform my duty matters. Dick Brogden wrote, "The evil you let into your heart will leap from you to your vulnerable ones." I don't want my family memories to be of an angry mother in the kitchen. What's cooking matters!

And that's not only about the physical food, but also the spiritual aspect.

What's cooking in your kitchen?

Week - Twenty-Nine - Dry Times

Enter Elijah, the prophet who bravely announces three years of drought to King Ahab. He refers to the authority behind his proclamation, and throughout the chapter, we read phrases like "according to," "the word of the Lord," and "I have commanded." Amid the sin and idolatry of Ahab's society, Elijah speaks for God. 

This was a dry and dark time for those who followed the God of Israel. Prophets were hiding in caves, some were walking carefully among the people, and in the courts, it was not a safe time to be a believer. After Elijah's bold prophecy, God hides him by the brook Cherith and commands the ravens to feed him. Once the brook dries up, God commands a widow woman in Zeraphath to care for God's man. 

From the conversation, it seems she reluctantly offers Elijah hospitality, yet God cares for all of them by providing a never-ending source of oil and meal. But when her son falls ill and dies, she begins to doubt whether Elijah was indeed a genuine prophet. Elijah, too, seems to question God's action toward the widow woman, and cries to the Lord to restore the child. 

As the child stands again before his mother, her words are, "Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth" (vs 24).

Why tell this story today? Because dry times do come. There are times when following Christ is difficult, and sometimes downright scary. We might feel like hiding away. We may need discernment in how we present ourselves to others. We may be in a dry patch, feeling alone with God as our only companion, or we may be on the edge, living solely by faith in God's provision. 

But during dry times, we need not dry up on the inside. God's promises hold true. His Word remains and refreshes the thirsty soul. Continue doing what God has commanded. Speak for Him. Place your faith in Him, according to what He has said and how He has worked in the past. His integrity is impeccable. 

Serve, give, and love according to what He has directed, for there is the place of provision, protection, deliverance, and blessing. God will prove Himself faithful. Dry times are not dry to Him.

Week Twenty-Eight - He That Ruleth

God's direct mandate is, "He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God."

Admittedly, few leaders attain this, whether in politics, education, or, sadly, even in the clergy. However, this principle of integrity and justice is admired and expected throughout the ranks of God's servants. 

For example, a father should be just and rule his home in the fear of God, and so should a mother. A pastor should be just and lead his church in the fear of God, as should all church leaders. A teacher should be just and manage their classroom in the fear of God. We could continue thinking of leadership positions that benefit from these two characteristics—justness and Godly fear.

Leadership makes us more accountable before God and others for our words and actions. It is foolish to think that we can flippantly do and say whatever we want simply because we hold a title or position. God will call us to account, so we'd best think before we speak or act. 

Dick Brogen, when speaking of leadership wrote, "If we enjoy pronouncing judgment, we are acting in the flesh and do not understand what it costs the Father to admonish His children. . . God employs an unyielding, unrelenting process to make holy those who would speak holiness." God takes the privilege of leadership seriously.

His mandate is found in 2 Samuel 23:3, "He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God." The remainder of the chapter recounts the exploits and bravery of David's mighty men of valor. This tells me that God recognizes justness and Godly fear at all levels of leadership and service. 

Given the current state of world politics, it may seem easy and warranted to point out the failures of world leaders. But that is not our responsibility. They will give an account, just as we will, before God. So let's not be too quick to point fingers. Let's use justness and Godly fear to examine our own lives first. Are we leading our homes well? Are we exhibiting good leadership skills in our workplace? Are we just with those under our care? Do we understand that all of us will give account unto God?

Humbling, isn't it? So, when and where God gives you a leadership opportunity, take it seriously. Your heavenly Father is watching.

Week Twenty-Seven - For Shame, For Shame

"Be careful, you'll fall in," were the last words I heard before I lost my balance and fell bottom-first into the freshly poured concrete. Embarassed, I raced for the house frantically holding my summer shorts as the concrete began to set. That wasn't the only shameful thing I have done, but I keenly remember feeling ashamed as I tried to salvage my dignity.

Dick Brogden says, "Shame is directly connected to self-consciousness. We were designed to live God-conscious lives, for there is no shame in Him. It is not so much that God wants us to stop thinking highly or lowly of ourselves—He wants us to not think of ourselves at all but to fix our eyes and attention on Him."

It was hard for me not to be self-conscious that day, but there is greater shame than experiencing a childhood accident. Shame comes when we realize we are sinners and the reality of our guilt overtakes our pride. Shame comes when we try to live a secret life or hide our mistakes. And, it comes when we face conviction on how self-centered we are to the exclusion of others and God. Shame exposes us.

Jesus endured shame for us. He was publicly beaten and humiliated. He hung indecently upon a cross, exposed to blasphemous ridicule. These shameful acts were done to Him, yet the Bible says, "Who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame" (Hebrews 12:2). He looked past shame to finished salvation and the restoring of His place beside the throne of God.

Brogden notes, "If Jesus' antidote to shame was the delight of intimacy with the Father, then ours should be the same." This will be key as we grow closer and closer to the Lord's return. "It will become less and less respectable to be a devoted follower of Jesus. Our future guarantees more scorn, more abuse, more disdain, and more shame... not less. We despise shame, not by avoiding it but by ignoring it as we fix our eyes on Jesus. Looking to Jesus clothes us, for when our eyes are fixed on Him, He clothes us with His righteousness. He covers all our shame."

I am reminded of Romans 8:1, "There is therefore now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit." 

For the shame our Christ endured, we should not shy away, but draw ever closer to Him. And for the promise of forgiveness and shame removed, let us keep our eyes solidly on Him.