Expectant!

Expectant!

They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. Psalm 126:5 KJV

Context:

The writer of this psalm started with a lovely recall of the mercies of God in the past. There was a time that Israel had been punished for its sin. The people had been dispersed to other nations as captives, which again proves the point that has always been made: God has no favourites when it comes to sin. It does not matter who you are or what good you have done in the past; God's eyes are too pure to behold sin and he will surely punish unconfessed sin, no matter in whom it is found. My first and foremost duty is to check my life to see that there is no sin in me. Have I been to Jesus for his cleansing blood? Am I washed clean, set free from the power of sin, and empowered to live holy? Nothing less than this standard will do. 

The writer recalled God's gracious dealings in the past and called on God to do it again. He had shown mercy before, when he turned around the captivity of Zion, and the writer was sure God could do it again. Is there anything I have been told is impossible and beyond redemption? Until God says it is over, it is not yet over. Man's views are limited to his experience and reach, but God is not limited by time, space or circumstances. He can do all things, and he is the One who can change any situation, no matter how dire or terrible it is. Today's extract relies on that truth. 

Message and Response:

For the one who seeks to sow, there must have been a time of gathering the right seed, preparing the ground the right way, and making materials and time available to pay attention to the seed. It has to be the right seed, sown in the right ground and given the right nutrients to enable it grow to full maturity and fruiting. The time of preparation is not a time for frivolities, but a time of focus. If I will ask God to come into my life and change my story, I must be ready to pay the price for his intervention. 

The one who seeks to sow knows the time and effort required to generate fruit, and is willing to do the work. There is no guarantee that the seed sown will bear fruit, yet the sower goes ahead to prepare the ground and then sow. Fear or expectation of failure is not strong enough to discourage the work of sowing. That has to be the attitude of a believer: if I can pay the price, God is able to give me the prize. I may not see the full picture on this side of eternity, but I know that God is all-powerful, and he is able to bring about the end that glorifies him. 

Why the tears? As I wait for God to intervene in my affairs, how is my heart? Am I seeking him for what I can get from him, or am I all about how it makes me feel? Am I seeking to glorify God, or to draw attention to myself? The heart of sowing is a heart of expectation. There is no pretence; no hypocrisy; just plain trust that God is able to take all that I have done, and bring about praise and glory to his name. 

If the heart is right, the results will be right. If I do not like what is happening to me right now, and I am seeking God's face for a change, my heart is the window into my expectation. How can I be casual and flippant about eternal things, unless I do not understand what is at stake? God wants to do mighty things in me, as well as through me, but he cannot go against the exercise of my freewill. If I seek him, he promises that I will find him. Joy lies at the end of all the pain. If I can only pay the price now, there is a lot of joy to look forward to. How's my heart? Is it one that is under God's control, subject to his leading and inspiration, or is it its own master, claiming independence of its creator? Whatever it is I want, my heart and its focus, pursuits and priorities will reveal what I consider important. His time of favour is here