Finding purpose
Do you ever feel stuck in life or feel no matter what you do, you can't seem to get the things you desire and hope for? For me, It felt like every time I set a goal or had a vision it would never come to fruition. I was watching everyone else reap their harvests and move forward but I felt stuck, year after year. It wasn't until I heard this church sermon that challenged me to ask myself a series of questions that would change my life forever. Have you ever asked yourself "What in this season of my life is not producing fruit and Why? At first I associated 'fruit' with cars, houses, huge bank accounts, clothes, shoes, jewelry, you know the things only money can buy.
It's not until last month I realized these are not the only fruits one can bear. You can also plant seeds to reap the 12 Fruits on a more spiritual level...
- Chastity
- Faithfulness
- Generosity
- Gentleness
- Goodness
- Joy
- Kindness
- Love
- Modesty
- Patience
- Peace
- Self-control
Well I felt like I encompassed some of those things, I still couldn't help but feel like I still felt empty and stuck, not moving forward in ways I can actually see. So, when I asked myself the question "What in this season of my life is not producing fruit and Why?" I realized there were areas in my life that were not producing fruit, nor was I reaping a harvest in spiritual or physical form.
It wasn't because the intention or hard work wasn't there; it was because I didn't know how to properly produce a harvest. I didn't know how to plant a seed the proper way. A seed is a vision, goal or desire and a harvest is simply what you pick and gather after a season of sowing and planting seeds.
Seven Ways to Harvest
So let's talk about seven ways to produce a bountiful harvest in this season. Ask yourself these questions to determine why your visions and dreams aren't manifesting.
- The Right Seed
Am I planting the right seed?
Seeds can only produce what it is meant to produce. You can't have apple seeds and expect oranges. When you have the right seed, then you can be sure in knowing, you will reap a particular harvest. If you want to plant a seed of prosperity and abundance in your finances, but you don't budget, save, or grow the money you have now, how do you expect that vision to grow into abundance. So ask do my behavior align with the seed or vision I am trying to grow?
- The Right Soil
What am i putting my seed in to nourish it to grow?
In other words, how is your mindset? Are you holding on to past limited beliefs that may keep you stuck subconsciously? Are you trying to plant a big vision inside a small mindset? In order to grow and reap a bountiful harvest, it has to be planted in fertile soil.
- The Right Environment
Am I in the right environment for my seed to grow?
Just like a palm tree, can't thrive in cold weather, a powerful vision can't thrive in a weak environment. Your seed may need a certain type of climate and temperature to grow. Who are you hanging around? Are you hanging around turtles with a giraffe type of thinking or vision? Where are you hanging around? We all can be a product of our environment so it is very important we are mindful of our environment. A positive seed cannot and will not grow and thrive in a negative environment.
- Sunlight
Am I allowing sunlight to reach my seed?
All seeds need sunlight to grow. Plants, flowers, fruits and vegetables all need light to grow and sprout from out the ground and your vision is no different. When I think of sunlight, its something natural and something that cannot be controlled by man. Sunlight is God.
Are you planting your seed in the presence of God or are you hiding your seed? I will often have a vision but will hide it from others in fear that people won't understand it, support it or snatch it away. But when you plant your seed in the light, God will bring out those who are supposed to help you in that season to nurture the seed. In fact, if you have a vision that will cause harm and hurt to others, this also can mean you are not planting it in the presence of God, therefore this seed will not grow. Spending time with God will help you hear when God speaks to you. Your intuition and spirit of discernment regarding this vision will be sharp.
- Right amount of Water
Am I providing the right amount of water to my seed?
When I think of water, I also think of a natural resource. Having the right amount of water is in your control. Watering your seed or vision is simply providing it with the necessary nutrients to help it grow. Of course God will provide the rain and the storms too because we all have storms in life that we have to weather. But what are you watering your seed with?
This can be the Word of God, affirmations, prayer, meditation, training, or education. What are you doing in the meantime to water this seed? I use to have a goal or vision and plant it right? I would get excited at first and start off watering it. After awhile of it not producing fruit, I will have another vision and will abandon the first seed to water that one and by the time I return back to it, the seed would pretty much be in dry dirt in the process of dying. It was because I wasn't watering it as it needed in order to grow into something of substance. Seeds can't grow in dry dirt, so make sure you are feeding it with something positive every day.
- Consistency
Am I being consistent with tending to my seed?
Are you doing things on a consistent basis? Day in Day out, when no one is watching and when everyone is watching? When you see results and when you don't see results? When you feel like and when you don't feel like it? Are you disciplined when things are not going as planned or do you give up the first sign of failure? Nothing great has ever came to past with inconsistent action. Trust me I know! When you act like a stamp, that is, stick to something until you're there, you have a better chance of manifesting something opposed to only giving it your best when you feel like it. We become what we want to be by being consistent.
- Crop Killers
Am I aware of the crop killers surrounding my seed?
Crop killers are anyone who tries to kill your vision. These killers have been assigned by the enemy for the sole purpose of killing your vision. Especially if you have a vision from God that will help and heal many people, expect for your seed to be attacked from every angle.
Crop killers can be people you know and don't know. Family, friends, co-workers and strangers can all be crop killers. The bad thing about it is, sometime they don't even know they have been assigned. Bad relationships and associations can be killing your harvest. Those people who remind you of your past, or remind you of your lack and flaws are crop killers. Those who throw 'shade' by gossiping, criticizing and blocking are vision snatchers. Beware of them. However, the most dangerous crop killer is yourself. Sometime you can self-sabotage your own harvest from insecurities and limited beliefs. These beliefs can choke and kill the seed before it even gets a chance to grow. You have to know your worth and know that if God gave you the vision, then you are deemed qualified for the job to help it grow. Act and move as such!
Visions that are sent from God will grow to become a harvest that will feed you and everyone around you, from your loved ones, your community to your nation. Guard your seed/vision with all of your heart, because it is needed in a time as this. And remember when the word says, you can tell a blessed person by the fruits they bear. Let's not take this as material possessions only. The word talks about the 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit as well. So often we measure our success or our blessings and harvests from the worldly things that can only be purchased with money, but to bear fruit is deeper than that.
So if you feel like you are not growing, take a look at how you are evaluating that. In fact, I encourage you to re-evaluate where you are right now and notice how much you have evolved spiritually! Embrace it!! And let that motivate you to keep going. We always reap our blessings in the spiritual realm before the physical.
COMMENTS