Blessed to be a blessing “The generous man [is a source of blessing and] shall be prosperous and enriched, And he who waters will himself be watered [reaping the generosity he has sown].” Proverbs 11:25 (AMP) We are reminded today that our harvest is never only for our blessing but for the blessing for others as well. Often, we feel that we have endured and worked hard to receive the blessing from God during our winter season and that we don’t want to share. God is clear about being generous and we should never lose sight of what He expects us to do with our harvest. “Do not neglec ..read more

Preparation of the soil (Soul) “Our soulish area (mind, willpower, emotions, and heart) need preparation in order to allow God to work with us during our winter seasons to reach our purpose (harvest). Farmers prepare the soil by plowing (loosening & digging), leveling (even distribution), and manuring (adding nutritional supplements). We have to prepare our hearts in the following ways: Loosening & digging – getting rid of all the unclean and unnecessary things. Trust Holy Spirit to guide you as you cleanse yourself through repentance and prayer. This prepares us to receive the seed ..read more

Hard-working farmer “[It is] the hard-working farmer [who labors to produce] who must be the first partaker of the fruits.” 2 Timothy 2:6 (AMPC) We too are farmers that work towards our harvest of divine purpose and overflow and we can learn much from the excellent example of timing, hard work, and harvesting. We will be looking closely at the six basic steps of farming and learn how to apply them to our lives: Soil preparation; Sowing: Irrigation; Germination; Product (Fruit) and Harvesting. What did Jesus say about a farmer? “But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the ..read more

God never changes “I know that whatever God does, it endures forever; nothing can be added to it nor can anything be taken from it, for God does it so that men will fear and worship Him [with awe-filled reverence, knowing that He is God].” Ecclesiastes 3:14 (AMP) Often when we experience challenging times, we change, our relationship with God may reach another level, some will draw closer and others may drawback. God is not affected by how you react to the changes; He has a divine plan and purpose for you and nothing will be added or removed for what He has planned for you. All He wants is f ..read more

Gift of God “I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good as long as they live; and also that every man should eat and drink and see and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God.” Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 (AMP) God has given us the gift of life, including the winter seasons. As we learn to see His beauty in everything, we can rejoice and enjoy our labour. Labour refers firstly to the spiritual faith we are exercising in staying focused and positive despite our challenges and secondly our physical hard labour. “The thief comes only in order to steal, ki ..read more

Mysterious longing “He has made everything beautiful and appropriate in its time. He has also planted eternity [a sense of divine purpose] in the human heart [a mysterious longing which nothing under the sun can satisfy, except God]—yet man cannot find out (comprehend, grasp) what God has done (His overall plan) from the beginning to the end.” Ecclesiastes 3:11 (AMP) We all have a mysterious longing in our hearts, for a long time I tried to satisfy this longing with various things until I learned that only God can satisfy because He is the One who planted the longing in the first p ..read more

Hibernate in His presence “HE WHO dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power no foe can withstand]. I will say of the Lord, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God; on Him I lean and rely, and in Him I [confidently] trust!” Psalm 91:1-2 (AMPC) Winter seasons remind me of ‘hide and seek ‘, sometimes we just want to hibernate and come out when everything is over! I do believe that God wants us to hide, hide in the secret place with Him as we seek His protection and guidance. If we look at our winter seasons from this ..read more

Dying to yourself “A time to kill and a time to heal; A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to weep and a time to laugh; A time to mourn and a time to dance. A time to throw away stones and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing. A time to search and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear apart and a time to sew together; A time to keep silent and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate; A time for war and a time for peace.” Ecclesiastes 3:3-8 (AMP) Seasons occur due to the earth ..read more

Plucking Time “A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted.”  Ecclesiastes 3:2 (NKJV) Winter seasons are difficult even though we have the knowledge and understanding of why they are needed. Looking at the word plucking in Ecclesiastes 3:2 which refers to taking hold of something, quickly removing it from its place; to extract and quickly or suddenly removing someone from a dangerous or unpleasant situation, I believe it refers to our winter season. As much as the change of seasons is visible from the outside there is much more happening de ..read more

Seasons for a reason “There is a season (a time appointed) for everything and a time for every delight and event or purpose under heaven” Ecclesiastes 3:1 (AMP) Every year we plant a new tree to celebrate the passing of winter and to embrace spring. During our time in the garden planting our new tree for this year, my eye caught the Quince Tree we planted last year and my heart broke, by the look of things, it was dead and had to be removed. We planned to remove the tree over the weekend as we were to cut off and clean up all the lifeless remainders of the harsh and cold ..read more