The Faithful Farmer

The farmer's life is one of admirable, painstaking patience.

As the season of planting begins to draw near, the farmer must begin the process of preparing the earth in a variety of ways so that it not only receives the seeds, but also nurtures and nourishes them. Then, once planted, the seeds can slowly crack open their outer layers and begin their process, in the darkness of the earth, of sprouting their fine little shoots into the soil. And as God is faithful, those seeds will grow larger over time to bear good produce for all to partake in. But time is the key; and in that gestational stage, so is the darkness.

The process of planting seeds and then waiting for the harvest is a long and arduous one; it requires much faith, patience, wisdom, intuition, understanding, trust in God's provision, and an ability to see into the far distance that God will bring the harvest that is to come, albeit after a great wait.

It is not a process where the results or the rewards of the toil are immediately seen or tasted, nor is it a process where there is any guarantee. Instead, it is a process that requires faith, and the basic understanding that if one courageously takes the necessary steps, makes the necessary effort, remains steadfast and obedient, and maintains a vision that God will produce, then success and an abundant harvest will certainly entail.

But the wait, in the dark... that is the challenge. But not for the faithful farmer.

The faithful farmer sees and knows a God with seasons upon seasons of sowing and harvesting and is obedient to this process of toiling and waiting intimately. He has embraced and befriended it, and is not discouraged.

God's word instills wisdom to the faithful farmer. It provides him with the secrets on the very nature of what is required to bear good fruit and to produce an abundant harvest. His enthusiasm is not dampened by the time, the effort, or the silence in the physical darkness. The Spirit of Light inside of him gives insight on what it takes to reap what has been sown at the perfect moment. And he awaits that perfect moment...

I am inspired by that faithful farmer, and by his God given wisdom and understanding.

I am inspired by his faith, his patience, his work ethic, his aches and pains, and his long-suffering.

I am that new faithful farmer, toiling and working the soil, preparing it, and planting seeds into the dark, quiet, still earth ...

I can feel the sweat on my brow, the aches and pains, the sun beating down on my shoulders, and the clouds swirling with the wind which serves as a reminder that God and His angels are present...

And now, all I can do is wait—wait with eagerness, with anticipation, with joy, with faith, with hope and with love that carries a vision of an abundant harvest from the seeds I have planted.

But for now, my seeds are in the soil, in the earth, in the darkness...until God brings them to Light.

After all, that is where all new life begins.