What Kind of Harvest Do You Expect?

As we enjoy the fall season, it brings with it the opportunity to partake of many seasonal fruits and vegetables, such as apples, pears, greens (mustard, turnip, collard), winter squash, and some of our spices, like fennel. Others, for example, broccoli and Brussels sprouts, may not bring so much glee. The Thanksgiving Day table, for many of us, can hold an array of vegetable dishes that resemble a fairytale food fantasy of eating.

Several of these vegetables began as seeds planted in the ground. A seed is one of the most amazing items in the basket of creation. It is made up of several parts, which include the storage of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins to support the embryo as it starts to grow. One noteworthy component is its protective seed coat. Like a loyal, well-prepared sentry, it is strong enough to provide protection against unwanted parasites and unhealthy environmental conditions. One of its most critical functions is preventing excessive loss of water from within the seed. Given the right conditions, the average seeds will thrive and bring forth a plentiful and healthy harvest.

Not surprising, the metaphorical expression of “sowing and reaping” illustrates perfectly what results when seeds are planted/sown (action), and gathered/reaped in the harvest (consequences). This is a universal concept, not unique to any one group or person. Labels like conservative, liberal, politician, judge, “religious,” or not, atheist, agnostic, Christian, or non-Christian do not matter. Both words (sowing and reaping) operate in the same harmony as planting a seed and can be applied to anyone. Sometimes, there may even be an “I told you so” ending.

Recently, I watched a popular television program where one of the main characters tried to correct what he thought was his “karma” for taking a lottery ticket that did not belong to him. He experienced many negative situations, including the death of his fiancée. In the end, he seemed to get the results he was seeking, but not without some pretty colossal consequences.

Despite its generally recognized Biblical origins, the sowing and reaping expression is used by politicians, musicians, self-help teachers, life coaches, motivational speakers, businesses, advertising agencies, charitable organizations, political candidates, and the list goes on.

There are a couple of undeniable truths that apply to the sowing and reaping principle.

First, evidence of the good seed that has been cared for and placed in the best possible planting surroundings for healthy growth is shown by its harvest. Like a seed in a garden, words and actions also are seeds filled with power to bring forth (or reap) a positive or a negative harvest. Words and/or actions can damage the character of another, de-value another, and even cause the death of another. If I plant negative seeds, my harvest will eventually bring forth a negative crop. Some seeds take many months to develop a root system and years to yield their produce. Rarely will I see my harvest spring up overnight. In the end, when it finally appears, it may not be the one I expected.

Second, what I plant is what I get. If I plant carrot seeds, what type of vegetable will I get? Certainly not peas. If I plant pumpkins, my harvest will be pumpkins, not lettuce. This applies to life harvests. If I plant false information, someone is bound to find out the truth and trace it back to me. If I plant seeds to support and assist others, these same things will be there for me when I need them. If I plant seeds of love, my harvest will bring forth love. In fact, a person’s harvest will tell its own story.

For example:
Sowers Yielding Harvests:

Clara Barton - (Founder of American Red Cross)
Martin Luther King - (Civil Rights Leader and Statesman)
William & Catherine Booth- (Founders, Salvation Army)
Mother Teresa - (Missionary)
Paul The Apostle - (Author of two-thirds of the New Testament, estimated.)

Here are some sayings I have heard regarding sowing and reaping:

“Life is like a garden; you reap what you sow.” Paulo Coelho
Keep your hands closed; nothing comes in. (Anonymous)
Clean out your closet to make room for new things. (Anonymous)
“Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly; whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” (2 Corinthians 6:9)
“As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it.”
(Job 4:8)
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” (Galatians 6:7)
“You reap what you sow. Life is like a boomerang. Our thoughts, deeds, and words return to us sooner or later, with astounding accuracy.”
Grant M. Bright

I hope you will join me in reflecting on some of the seeds we have sown, and check to see if they have been planted under the right conditions, guaranteeing a Divine harvest of love.