March 8th

Sow to the Spirit and Don’t Lose Heart

⁸For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. ⁹And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.  Galatians 6:8-9  NKJV 

Sowing to the Spirit, is a planting process that is followed by a growth process.  Growing a spiritual plant takes time, good soil, water, weed control, and sunlight.  It requires patience, perseverance and faithfulness.  We must not grow weary and lose heart during the growth process, because this will jeopardize our harvest.  We have to surrender any pride in our hearts and presumption of what God should do as we approach an opportunity to minister to others.  

It’s easy to let anxiousness, pride and the desire for control to corrupt our efforts of sowing to the Spirit.  Such corruption can destroy the spiritual seeds we are planting.  For example, one of the potentially difficult aspects of healing prayer is that the person doing the praying is not in charge of the healing.  God decides when, where and how healing occurs. If our pride and desire for control gets in the way of what God wants to do for the person we’re praying for, it’s likely that healing will not happen.  We need to be patient and at peace with letting God be in control.  We have to be content in being God’s servants.  

Finally, as we sow to the Spirit, we must take care not to base our faith on what we see.  We won’t see the seeds sprouting immediately. Rather, it will take time for them to grow and reach the surface.  Sow with perseverance, patience, and faithfulness.  Do not lose heart and give up.  If you grow weary, ask your Christian brothers and sisters around you to pray for you and encourage you to not give up.  In due time, you will reap a wonderful harvest for the Lord. 

Questions for further thought:

• What are some practical examples of the corruption we’ll reap if we sow to the flesh?
• How does pride damage our relationship with God? (James 4:6)
• What will come our way to test our patience and develop it as we walk with God? (James 1:2-4)
• What will we be reaping after we’ve sown to the Spirit? (Galatians 5:22-23)

Prayer:

“Heavenly Father, thank you for the law of sowing and reaping.  Please quicken my mind to any activities that I am doing that are sowing to my flesh.  I ask for your forgiveness for that sin.  Please give me wisdom for redirecting all of my efforts to sowing to the Spirit.  Please build patience and perseverance in me to maximize my fruitfulness for your kingdom.  Thank you, Father!  In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”