39. Ploughing and Planting

Hi, and welcome back! We’re continuing our theme around seasons and, this week, we’re going to look into agricultural seasons and the spiritual lessons we can learn from them. Jesus often told stories with agricultural themes, possibly because the Jews in Bible times were an agriculturally based society, and they understood principles such as sowing and reaping, ploughing, planting and harvesting.

However, most of us don’t have an agricultural background, therefore we could easily miss the significance of these scriptures. So let’s take a look at the agricultural seasons, and see what spiritual wisdom we can draw from them.

Ploughing

You don’t have to be a farmer to know that ploughing and preparing the ground before planting is essential; if you plant a seed in hard rocky ground, it will most probably just die. For a seed to grow, it needs to be planted in ground that is soft, with no rocks or hard clumps, and which is not overrun with weeds which could sap nutrients out of the soil.

Hosea 10:12 speaks about ‘breaking up the fallow ground’ so that God can ‘come and rain righteousness upon you.’ Fallow ground can often represent areas in our life that we haven’t allowed God into, areas where our hearts are hard. Hosea was highlighting the need for us to keep our hearts soft before God, ready to receive the righteous seeds which Father wants to plant in our hearts.

If we resist, He will wait, because He’s a good Father who wants us to yield to Him out of a desire for deeper relationship, not out of coercion or intimidation. He gives us the freedom to choose to yield, or to continue on our own path. Having said that, I’ve learnt that saying ‘no’ only delays the inevitable in a ploughing season because, in time, He will bring you back to that same place and ask the same questions again. He will ask you to plough the field of your heart and break up the fallow ground, and He will keep coming back, drawing your attention to the same ‘rocky’ area. Our Lord God is so kind and so gracious, but He is also extremely persistent!

Ploughing seasons are really character-building times; they’re hard work, but so worth it in the long run. The great news is that, when we let go of our stubbornness, pride, or insecurity, and allow God to break up the fallow ground in our heart, we get to go on to the next season - planting!

Planting / Seed sowing 

Any good farmer knows that, if you plant seeds in winter, they will most likely die because the conditions are not right. Matthew 13 outlines the Parable of the Sower and there are many applications to this parable. However, in the context of what we are discussing, I want to highlight the importance of how, when and where you sow your seed.

For instance, practically speaking, if you’re in a season of transition where everything in your life seems to be changing and life feels ‘upside down’, that’s probably not a good time to try and implement an intense new Bible reading programme!

Now, if the truth be told, I’m seriously not qualified to share about sowing or reaping on a natural level, because I am so NOT green fingered. Nearly every plant that has the misfortune to be given to me dies within weeks, if not days of being given to me. However, I learnt some truths about seed planting one summer when I decided to plant some sunflowers in the garden. After going to “my friend Google” I bought some peat pots and soil, planted one little seed in each pot, covered them with the soil, watered them, and put some on the windowsill inside the kitchen and some on the porch outside.

I still had some seeds left over, so I decided to plant them straight in the ground outside the front of our house, just to see if they would do anything. By then I was just bored of the laborious process of planting single tiny seeds in individual pots, so I dug up the ground along the fence line, sprinkled the remaining seeds in randomly, and covered them up. Yes, I know, really not good gardening, but I was seriously bored of the whole gardening thing by then!

I watered all three groups of seeds (the kitchen seeds, the porch seeds and the garden seeds), and watched with bated breath. Nothing happened for some time, but then one day, I saw a tiny green bulge in the kitchen seed: my little sunflowers were sprouting! Shortly afterwards, the porch seeds started sprouting as well and, in due course, even the garden ones sprouted too.

It was extremely obvious which seeds were which: the largest and healthiest sunflowers were the ones in peat pots in the kitchen where it was warm and protected from the elements. The peat pot seedlings on the porch grew well, but not as well as the kitchen ones, and the seeds which I randomly scattered directly into the ground outside were tiny and looked more like yellow daisies than sunflowers.

So, where you are planting (or ‘investing’) your seeds really matters. Planting seeds/investing in the wrong thing (or too many things) can be a real drain on your time and energy. How do you know when to continue planting? If you are planting ‘in season’, there will be a grace on what you are doing, it will bring life to you. If you are finding that area hard work, dry or lifeless, that’s usually an  indication that it’s time to stop.

Over the years I have done a fair amount of mentoring, and for one of the ladies I mentored, it was a really fruitful relationship which lasted several years. However, all of a sudden it became really hard work, there wasn’t much positive fruit from the mentoring sessions, and the sense of grace and blessing just wasn’t there anymore. I examined my heart and, after praying, I realised God was trying to show me that the season of mentoring this lady was coming to an end. When we talked it over she agreed. If we had carried on indefinitely, that mentoring relationship which had brought such joy could have become stale and fruitless, and might have had a detrimental effect on our relationship. But, because we recognised the change in season, we could transition and move on with integrity and joy.

There have been times in my life when I was trying to do so many different things at the same time. It was like the sunflower seeds I had randomly scattered in the garden; none of them received the care or attention that they deserved and so I ended up with a lot of flowers springing up, none of which were strong or full grown, and none of which lived very long. If we over commit ourselves or try to do too much, that is what can happen – we might appear to get lots done, but none of it is particularly notable, excellent or long lasting.

The most important thing to remember regarding this area of our life is that partnering with the Holy Spirit in the seasons you walk through is what produces life! We cannot fully understand the seasons without Him, but He knows, and if we partner with Him He will ‘lead us into all truth’ and guide us in the way we should go.

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Until next time ….

Read Hosea 10:12. Ask God to show you whether there are any areas in your life where the ‘soil of your heart’ is hard and unyielding. If anything comes to mind, bring it before Him in prayer, repent, and ask Him to give you a soft heart.

Think about the different areas you are involved in, in which you are giving of yourself (e.g. work, family, church involvement, personal friendships or mentoring). Do you feel ‘stretched’ in an unhealthy way? Are there any areas which you feel you could or should stop involvement in, either permanently or for a season? Bring these before the Lord in prayer.

Nicky Heymans is an author of historical fiction who is known for drawing fresh life and inspiration out of familiar Bible stories. She would love to hear from you! Please feel free to share your thoughts or ask questions by scrolling down to the bottom of this page and clicking on the 'contact' link, and she will get back to you.