When evaluating Spiritual things, we ought to keep in mind two stories that Jesus told, both of which can be found in Matthew 13.
"A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown” (verses 9-12).
The second story is found in verses 24-31. "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?' 'An enemy did this,' he replied. The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?' 'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'”
The lesson: We are responsible for the process - not the results!
In the first story, the sower broadcast the seed everywhere. That is his job. Some of it will find good soil and grow. Some of it will not. The growth of the seed is not the responsibility of the sower. He is responsible for the process of sowing. Growth depends on many things (soil conditions, weather, storms) most of which are out of his control.
The second story reminds us that we should not focus on “results” because the real results will not be known until the end. It is difficult for us to evaluate things now because things are still growing. We just do not know enough right now to make an accurate judgment.
Therefore, we need to focus on what we can control – ourselves! The apostle Paul had the proper perspective when he said, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow” (1 Corinthians 3:6). We cannot make anything grow, but we can be (and need to be) part of the process.
In the words of Robert Lewis Stevenson, “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant”.
If we did that, we might be surprised by the harvest as well.
"A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown” (verses 9-12).
The second story is found in verses 24-31. "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?' 'An enemy did this,' he replied. The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?' 'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'”
The lesson: We are responsible for the process - not the results!
In the first story, the sower broadcast the seed everywhere. That is his job. Some of it will find good soil and grow. Some of it will not. The growth of the seed is not the responsibility of the sower. He is responsible for the process of sowing. Growth depends on many things (soil conditions, weather, storms) most of which are out of his control.
The second story reminds us that we should not focus on “results” because the real results will not be known until the end. It is difficult for us to evaluate things now because things are still growing. We just do not know enough right now to make an accurate judgment.
Therefore, we need to focus on what we can control – ourselves! The apostle Paul had the proper perspective when he said, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow” (1 Corinthians 3:6). We cannot make anything grow, but we can be (and need to be) part of the process.
In the words of Robert Lewis Stevenson, “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant”.
If we did that, we might be surprised by the harvest as well.
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