Friday 20 Dec 2013

Friday Reading: John 4:34-38

Key Verse: John 4:35
Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!

Devotion:
Jesus had a way of showing us all that we do have work to do whilst here on earth, just as He did. He was never short of work, always seeking to do the will of His Father, our God in heaven. When we start to think that we may not have work to do because it looks a bit barren here, maybe we have closed our eyes to the real harvest or maybe we are looking in the wrong field for the harvest. God has been sowing seeds for a long time, nurturing those seeds, watering them and feeding them with light; we have a task to do and that is to sort out the harvest and not leave it in the field.

It is Christ who will have the final harvest that will bring us all home, but it is us who have to deal with everyday life and those around us right now. If we ignore the field around us then we are saying to God that we do not care for the crop that He has planted and nurtured for us! Who are we to argue with our God who does know everything? Who are we to argue with our God who knows who will come to Him and who will reject Him? We may not like some of the people around us but we cannot see inside their hearts like God can – how do we know what they seek?

Our lot is to spread the gospel and bring those people in who are willing to listen, not the ones we think should grow up to be the best harvest! Yes it is hard to not be picky and try to lift up those that we think will work whilst leaving those that we think are failures; God is the one who has brought people into our lives so that we can work with them. God is the one who has brought the people into our lives that He knows we can help. We just have to listen a bit more!

We may be the ones who sow a few seeds that will be harvested somewhere else. We may be the ones who come along at the right second and bring someone to Christ. We may be the ones who say something that sticks in that persons mind that finally makes them go to church on the other side of the world. Or we may be the one who has to work with someone from when they were young right up until they finally accept Christ as Lord and Saviour. God has chosen us for a reason and we should be willing to come forward and be used of Him, daily.

Points to Ponder:
Do you select who you talk to about God?

Who is going to tell the others about God?