The Principle of Sowing and Reaping

“But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.” (2Co 9:6 AV)

Not a difficult passage to understand.  Specifically speaking, Paul is talking about financial gifts to the cause of the kingdom.  He is speaking to a church that does not have a whole lot.  The principle is the same no matter our status.  Those that sow abundantly will reap the same.  Those who sow sparingly will not receive all that much of a blessing.  This principle is not limited to generosity alone.  This truth applies in all areas of life.  It applies to investments.  It applies to relationships.  It applies to physical fitness or our health.  What is of most concern in this truth is the obvious nature of it, yet the lack of application which we see in our lives.  We know that in order to realize much, we must invest much.  Yet, we pass up opportunities to do just that.  Then we wonder why we suffer need.  Many problems of life could be avoided if we learned to part with little to gain much.

The obvious example here is a farmer.  The more seed he sows, the greater the crop.  Or an investment banker.  The more capital he has in the game, the greater the return.  These are obvious applications. Tithing is another.  With tithing, the return can be material blessings.  More times than not, they are spiritual blessings.  The same is true of our relationships.  The more of ourselves we invest in them, the greater the return.  I know I have written this many times, but the LORD has been so good to me to allow me to wed my very best friend.  He has also blessed us with the opportunity to spend a lot of time together.  When our family was very young, we worked opposite shifts and barely saw one another.  Those were not good years.  That is, in the sense of getting to know one another and drawing closer.  Once things calmed down and our schedules meshed, the LORD allowed us to spend quite a bit of time together.  As Lisa reduced the hours she worked, this allowed even more time.  Now, she works part-time and I work mostly from home.  Outside of about four or five hours four days a week, we are together.  There is a lot of time vested between the two of us.  I wouldn’t have it any other way.  We go almost everywhere together.  We go shopping together.  We go out to eat together.  We stay in and cook together.  We clean together.  We run errands together.  We go to appointments together.  We even sit in on one another’s appointments.  A lot of time has been vested into this relationship.  And the returns are equally wonderful.  The same was true of my sons.  We often receive compliments on our sons and how they turned out.  We are often asked how that happened.  All I can say is that through trials, the LORD allowed me to spend a lot of time with them.  We caddied together.  I coached and they played.  We spent a lot of time on the golf course, hunting, or watching sports.  Time is, and always will be the greatest asset of investment anyone can make.

All of this to prove a point.  Those who are selfish with their time, resources, and person will eventually suffer want.  Those who are generous will realize a return greater than the investment.  We live in trying times.  Resources, time, and commitment are strained.  We feel like we cannot do what we really think we should be doing except that to do otherwise means we will suffer in some way down the road.  It first takes a will.  Then it takes prioritizing.  If we want a great return, we have to sacrifice and invest.  That is how God’s economy works.