Many recognized experts and scientific minds have theorized there are several universal laws. Perhaps you have heard of a few and can name some of them. Examples are:

• The Law of Cause and Effect
  Modified interpretation: Negative energy out, negative energy in. Positive energy out, positive energy in.

 

• The Law of Relativity
  Modified interpretation: When you compare yourself to a thing or a person, you cloud your perspective and perception; you fail to realize that everything is neutral.

 

• The Law of Sowing and Reaping
  Biblical interpretation:
  “Don’t be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a person sows, so he will also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)
  

 
The Law of Sowing and Reaping is one law you might want to view as a primary influencer in your life journey. It parallels The Law of Cause and Effect—what kind of seed are you sowing? This combination never fails.
 
You may recall that in one of my earlier Nuggets, I mentioned the process of seed planting. Some of the influencers of seed planting are the soil, rain or water, and parasites. Seeds are alive, so when you plant a seed, you can expect a harvest.
 
There are certain conditions in which seeds thrive and bring forth a bountiful and prosperous harvest. On the other hand, seeds, thrown among the soil like rocks, will yield an unhealthy crop or a variety of weeds.
 
Our Biblical and world history are filled with an abundance of stories about kings, rulers, and leaders who reaped the harvest of the seed they sowed—David, Jezebel, and Saul among the most notable. Their seeds of lust, uncontrollable greed and power, and jealousy yielded devastating harvests. Their children and families were wiped out, and others met violent deaths or committed suicide.
 
What about our daily seed bag? Are we putting our seeds in soil that will yield a fruitful harvest? Planting seed is not always about money. It is also about using the seed God has given us to plant/invest seeds in the life of another.  
 
It’s giving someone a pair of clean socks or a blanket or giving a kind word that gives the person a sense of value and self-worth. It’s praying for our family and leaders. It’s lending a helping hand to a struggling family. How often do we volunteer at a shelter or become a counselor at a youth camp? Sowing seed is all of these and more.
 
Israel and the United States have survived as powerful nations despite the seeds of disobedience and our anti-God/anti-Christ attitudes. God’s remarkable grace has intervened throughout the United States’ and Israel’s history.
 
With the knowledge of His amazing grace, let us not lapse into selective amnesia and forget that The Law of Sowing and Reaping and The Law of Cause and Effect are irreversible. These laws work at both the national and personal levels. They work 24-hours a day, 365 (366 when there is a leap year) days a year, whether or not we know it. Some seeds take longer to germinate than others, but they will always yield a harvest.
 
If you don’t like the harvest you are reaping, you may want to consider changing not only the type of seeds you are sowing, but also the location and quality of soil into which you plant those seeds

All of us have closets, either physical (residential) or mental. A physical closet is a place that is private and is not opened to everyone. A mental closet is secretive—a place where we can retreat. Like many of us, we usually have stuff in our closets that we need to eliminate by discarding or giving away.
 
Because of sentimental value and pleasant memories, discarding or giving away things in your physical closet can be nostalgic. On the other hand, since the mind does not forget anything, tossing certain things hanging or stored in your mental closet can feel like struggling to climb a giant mountain. It won’t be easy.
 
Your mental closet contains a mishmash of collected stuff—different sizes, different occasions, events, situations, and people. A short list of items might include failure, disappointment, frustration, offense, and unforgiveness. If you try to recall some of them, you will discover that many have begun to fade, while others are as vivid as getting a brand-new pair of shoes.
 
Most of you probably are familiar with several of the film and television adaptations of the original Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol. The story's plot focuses on a miserly, cantankerous, and bitter old business owner named Scrooge, who mistreats his employees and nephew and refuses to celebrate Christmas. In the film, Scrooge first sees the ghost of his former business partner. Later, he is visited while in bed by three spirits Past, Present, and Future. Although the film implies that Scrooge experienced these events, more realistically, they took place in his mind. Can you imagine if all the negative things we held in our minds surfaced in the same manner as Scrooge? I, for one, would probably seek medical attention.
 
If we allowed them, some of the short list items would tend to corrupt our minds. For example:

• Failure: It should be perceived as nothing more than a falling short or a lack of success by some person’s(s’) standards. Don’t let those standards dictate your steps. (Romans 12:2)
• Disappointment: It is a temporary let down; do not give it more life. When one door closes, another will open. God’s timing is perfect. This is not the end. (Psalm 37:23)
• Offense: It can be viewed as an insult. However, you can hold on to the bow and arrow of offense, or you can drop the bow and thank God for His love in the larger lesson and His purpose within you. Release your offender emotionally, and the spiritual will follow. (I Thessalonians 5:18)
• Unforgiveness: According to the Bible, there is no offense so gross that it goes beyond God’s forgiveness, except unforgiveness. Train yourself to crush your stinking memories and leave them behind. Forgiveness does not mean that you don’t have a right not to forgive, or to be angry and offended. Instead, you realize that God is the solution for your offender. (Philippians 3:13)

 
Our mental closets will significantly improve with regular and frequent cleaning. The maturity of your inner person depends upon your mind connecting to the heart, the central branch of your spiritual and moral life. The apostle Paul advises us to continually “renew our mind” so we will know God’s desire for success. (Romans 12:2)
 
Stop hoarding unnecessary junk. Clean out your closets to make room for a healthier life and greater blessings!