The Plumbline

Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. (Galatians 6:7-9) Successful people 'do' consistently what others 'do' occasionally. It may come as a surprise to some, but we have to intentionally prioritize whatever it is we want to realize in our lives. Intentions don't always determine our end results, do they? We can have great intentions but miserable results. Consistent actions are what determines 'success', not just great intentions. We start by doing the smallest of 'right' things, then we add to those some slightly bigger 'right' things until we one day see change happening....

For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you. (2 Corinthians 9:10) As we have been exploring 'seeds' throughout the past several days, let us not forget what God says about the provider of the seed - it comes from him, all of it, no exceptions. The farmer sows the seed, but he didn't create what he sows. The provision God makes in our lives each and every day should never be taken lightly. He is the one who provides all the 'resources' we need - physical, spiritual, relational. We only need to receive what he provides, then put it into good use. It is a hard thing to trust God sometimes, especially when we don't see the immediate 'provision' of whatever it is we need, isn't it? We get a little too focused on the need for the 'seed' and forget that much preparation must go into the soil before it is e...

Mark Twain said that the human race had one really 'effective' weapon - laughter. I think our most effective weapon is not really laughter as much as it is the Word of God. Laughter might give us a momentary release - the Word of God and what it can accomplish within us is lasting and sure. Have you ever been reading through scripture only to find something within the passage 'calls out' some behavior you have been struggling with, or reveals some answer to a worry you have been mulling over? The purpose of the Word of God is to teach us - to make us wise. We are able to discern direction once hidden from us because of the work of the Spirit of God within us and the revelation of the Word of God to us. If we want more than an 'immediate release', we need to take in what can give us a permanent and secure hope. If you rebuke a mocker, you will only get a smart retort; yes, he will snarl at you. So don’t bother with him; he will only hate you for trying to help h...

Have you ever had a bumper crop? One of those "I cannot find enough pots to store it all" kind of harvests? Probably about the last thing you want to hear at that moment is that there is more to come! You are having a hard enough time just finding ways to use all you have already been blessed to receive and now there is more to come? That's how it is with God's generosity, love, and grace - it just keeps on coming until it overflows from our lives into the lives of others! There’s more to come: We continue to shout our praise even when we’re hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next. In alert expectancy such as this, we’re never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary—we can’t round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit! ( Romans 5:3-4 ...

Have you ever considered how peanuts grow?  We get these nicely washed, lightly roasted, sometimes salted peanuts in a bag from our grocer, but I wonder if we realize just how and where these little treasures grow.  Most of us think of fruit as something produced above the surface of the dirt, but peanuts are actually produced "underground".  They turn from flowering plants into underground seed pods without us even noticing the growth going on beneath the surface.  I think this may be similar to the growth we often experience in our own lives.  Stuff springs up on the surface - but the completion of the growth is really accomplished "underground" in our lives. Another thing to consider is the place of fruit is sometimes the darkest place! Don’t be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds. All he’ll have to show for his life ...

Harvest:  A supply of anything gathered at maturity and stored; the result or consequences of any act, process, or event. I wonder if we have given much thought to the various "harvests" we have in our lives.  In most cases, we are not farmers - so this idea of "harvesting" is not fully understood.  The great work of producing the end result of a tremendous "intake" of grain is almost missed by us because we simply go to the local grocer and purchase the bagged flour, loaf of bread, or cake mix right off the shelf.  If there was a greater appreciation for the "work" which makes the harvest possible, I wonder if we'd have any greater appreciation for the "filled shelves" at the grocer?  Our definition above is really interesting, simply because it doesn't start with the definition of a farmer's work, but of the general work of seeing something to the point of maturity - then storing up the thing which has been brought to th...

Most would think of a "circumstance" as something which modifies or influences what will happen - what the outcome will be.  When we have the right one in charge of the "circumstances", there is no "modifier" beyond our ability to deal! Lord , change our circumstances for the better,  like dry streams in the desert waste!   Let those who plant with tears   reap the harvest with joyful shouts. Let those who go out,   crying and carrying their seed,   come home with joyful shouts,   carrying bales of grain!   (Psalm 126:4-6 CEB) Do you know what a drought is?  It the simplest sense, it is a period of "dryness".  Most "dry spells" are not a matter of our doing.  They are "circumstances" beyond our control.  In the times of "dryness" there is much at work attempting to modify our responses - perhaps even shaping our outcome, as a result.  In the time of dryness we have a couple of options: 1) Scheme our way through...

Try as I might, my gardening expeditions have produced very little fruit.  I spent about three years in a row working the soil, creating flowerbeds, and then planting the vegetables of the season.  My hopes - one of those above the ground beds of lush vegetable gardens.  My actual production - dead vines, undeveloped melons, and a tremendous harvest for the birds!  Did I harvest what I planted?  Most would say, "No", but when you explore the work performed AFTER the planting was done, you'd change your answer!!   7-8 Don't be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds. All he'll have to show for his life is weeds! But the one who plants in response to God, letting God's Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life. (Galations 6:7-8 The Message) The fact remains, what is planted must ...