Reaping the Harvest!
There is a story about two men from New York City who had never been out of the city. They decided they had enough of city life and so they would head out west and try to live off the land like their ancestors did. As they arrived in the mid-west they decided they would need a mule to help them with the plowing. So they found the local general store and asked the owner if he had any mules for sale. The owner of the store told them, “No, I’m afraid not, boys.” The two men then noticed a stack of honeydew melons against the wall. They asked the storeowner, “What are those things there?” The store owner decided to have a little fun with these two city boys, and he told them, that they were mule eggs, and they were welcome to take a couple with them. He said, “You just take those eggs home and wait for them to hatch, and you’ll have yourself a couple of mules.” The two men from New York thanked the storeowner kindly and set two of the honeydew melons in the back of their pickup truck. As the two men were driving down the road they hit a big bump, which caused one of the melons to bounce out and bust open on the road. Looking back they saw that they had lost one of their mule eggs and they immediately stopped the truck and got out to take a look and see what had become of it. As they were getting out of the truck a long eared rabbit crossed the road, and seeing the melon busted on the ground hopped right in the middle of it and began eating the melon. As the two men came around the truck, the one exclaimed, “Hey, our mule egg has hatched! Let’s get our mule.” The two men moved toward the rabbit, but it took off hopping. Finally after about what seemed like an hour of chasing that rabbit the two men gave up. They both collapsed on the ground. The one man said, “Well I guess we lost our mule.” The other man nodded grimly. Yes, but you know,” he said, “I’m not sure I wanted to plow that fast anyway.”
We all want to see the Piqua Church of Christ grow, we all want to reach the lost for Christ, but often, like the two city boys, our expectations differ from reality. We try to grow the church in our own manner without the proper understanding of how God brings growth to a congregation. I want to share with you the steps needed to grow the Church of Christ as well as reap the Harvest that God has given us. It all starts with planting the seed and having the right kind of seed. It is amazing at how many varieties of seed there are. Some seed only work with certain kinds of herbicides. Each seed also differs in the yield as well as many other factors. It is important to plant the right kind of seed to get a good harvest. The apostle Paul describes himself as a planter of seeds. “Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” Ephesians 6:19-20 We have the best seed to plant and what is more, is that it is freely given.
The next step that we must take is to sow the seed with love; in order to plant a seed you have put it in the ground. The way in which we present the gospel message affects the way in which our listeners will receive it. We most sow the seed of Christ in Love. If we are to build up the body of Christ at Piqua Church of Christ, we must nurture those in our fellowship.
Hebrews 10:23-25 tells us; “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the day approaching. After the gospel seed has been planted and nurtured by our ministry we look forward to the time of harvest when we can reap the blessings of our work. Many times we fall into the trap of the world with the mentality of, “We want the Harvest NOW.” In a fast paced society we want results NOW. We want fast conversions, quick memberships, and church growth right now. When a farmer prepares for harvest, the farmer starts early in the year researching and ordering the right seed, the farmer prepares the ground, then waits for the right time to plant, followed by fertilizing, watering, and cultivating. For an entire year they labor for just a short time of harvest. As the farmer waits for his harvest we too must wait on the Lord for growth, for it is God who brings the increase.
The other trap that we can fall into is the mentality that we want the credit for the Harvest. Yet all the credit for the harvest belongs to God for without His grace there would be no harvest. Without the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross, and without the work of the Holy Spirit through God’s Word, all would perish. We have life because Jesus gave us life. It is God who brings the increase, who changes lives, yet we serve as His tools and must make ourselves ready to be put to work. If we are faithful in sharing the Word of God with others and nurturing and encouraging them to grow in the faith. Then God will be faithful in bringing about a harvest of growth in the Piqua Church of Christ.
Serving His Kingdom Together,
Travis Mowell