I want to tell you a story that has not left me over the years. The theme is how we can draw upon what the Lord has provided for us to prosper in this life regardless of dire circumstance. It is a long story so I plan to post it in three parts. This first section is about a six minute read.

Darkness is moving in.  There are wars and rumors of wars.  Daily we hear reports of thousands of troops and machines, guns and tanks moving from region to region.  Children are being kidnapped at record numbers.  Public places are bombed regularly.  Children are involved in crimes of pornography, rape and even murder.  Darkness is closing in upon us all.  How will we cope in the aftermath of 911 and Covid, since we are convinced now that “Things will never, ever be the same.”  Is there something new that Christians should be doing to draw upon their source of life?  Has the Lord brought a new dimension to our livelihood or have we just not made the most of what He told us to do in the first place?

Do you suppose He meant what is recorded in MT 24:7-13?

 “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.

“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of Me.  At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”

            “But those who stand firm to the end will be saved.”    How do you plan to do that standing? In Ephesians 6, Paul said that having put on the armor of God we are to stand, and stand therefore and pray. There have been times when I was not certain I had the strength to stand.  Yet, the Lord God came and commanded me to stand up anyway.  In my spirit, and with His help, I was enabled to stand, because I yielded to His authority as my Lord God Almighty.  I did not think I could. He said I was to do it. He stood there with me until I tried and then He made it possible for me to stand up. But, I digress.

            There are so many lessons spelled out for us in the natural world.  Mind you, I do not confuse my faith with “tree hugging.”  I have heard God teach me through rocks and turtles, rain and bird wings, rotting things and green sprouts.  I want to share a lesson that I filed away years ago.  I knew there was truth here, but until recently, I have never tried to express it.  So here goes!

Jesus tells a parable in MK 4: 26-29 “The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how.  The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come.”

Oh, my friends who want a full explanation of how God does things and why!  Here is a parable you will not enjoy wrestling with, but you might be better off for giving it a close look. Perhaps we are the farmer.  We spread what we know about the kingdom of God.  We go about the business of our lives and we have not a clue how the kingdom grows.  When it is harvest time, we rejoice and send in the giant American mowers to reap as many fields as possible in air conditioned comfort. 

J. B. Phillips translates it this way:   “The kingdom of God is like a man scattering seed on the ground and then going to bed each night and getting up every morning, while the seed sprouts and grows up though he has NO IDEA HOW IT HAPPENS.  The earth produces a crop without any help from anyone: first a blade, the ear of corn, then the full-grown grain in the ear. And as soon as the crop is ready, he sends his reapers in without delay for the harvest-time has come.”

We truly have no idea how the kingdom of God grows.  History has shown us that it does grow very well under pressure.  The numbers within the Chinese church multiplied and continue to multiply even during oppression of any expression of faith.  When the wall fell in Berlin, and Communist Russia began to open to the West, the churches found more believers than ever known before.  No one is certain how many remain within the privacy and confines of home churches, still fearful of the repressive tactics of their governments. Now it is obvious, especially in most highly populated urban areas of America, that Christianity is not as widely accepted and embraced as in the past.  So how will those of us who truly love the Lord Jesus Christ keep our love for Him warm? How might we endure to the end?

In 1 PET 1:23 the NIV reads   “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” Born by the Word, the enduring and living Word of God.  Do you make that your priority every single day?  If the Word is the means by which we were born, I believe it is also the means by which our life continues to be nourished and encouraged.  As the darkness grows darker we had best remember that the Psalmist declares that God’s Word is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path (PS 119: 105). The NASB says:  “for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and abiding word of God.” 

How can the Word of God abide in me if I constantly fill myself with other things and diversions and leisure pastimes and pleasures and wants and wanton desires and everything else under the sun?

Until next time, I implore you to feed on the Word of God. You can start with a Psalm per day and a Proverb per day. Of try some chapters in Mark. Feed some place in your Bible. If you do not have a bible, get one. I like paper best because I can mark in it , take notes, and not lose them in the cloud. If you like electronic try Bible Gateway. I find it easy to use.