Plowed

We have a lot of farmers in our area, and it is very cool to see a field go from a bare field to a planted field that is barely above ground. Then the rain and sun cause those plants to shoot up almost overnight, and before long, they are harvesting the crop. Then they wait a little bit and start the whole process over again. A very important part of the whole process is at the beginning, and it involves plowing. If a field has lain dormant with no crops for a while, the ground they plow is called fallowed ground. Fallow ground is ground that has not been used, but has great potential to produce an amazing crop, but it must be plowed to begin the process.

The prophet Hosea wrote the following words about the spiritual crop that is promised by God if we plant seeds. Hosea 10: ¹² I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you. In this prophecy, the Lord was calling judgment on Israel because of their lack of planting seeds of the Word in their lives, and thus, they were not growing. In verse 12, God is showing them what "could" happen if they would begin planting again, or as scripture puts it, sowing seeds of righteousness.

Those seeds will produce great fruit in the lives of believers, and the plow must run deep to stir our spiritual dirt to accept seeds again. Those seeds have great power and purpose, and our spiritual growth is tied to the planting itself. If we accept a life of mediocrity, we are beginning a process that ends with our lives (or field) not producing anything, and our spiritual ground becomes fallow.

The fallow ground can be useful again, but we must renew, and our willingness to let God plow deep in our spiritual life must have a commitment to follow God's changes that He wants to make in our lives. We must examine where we are and be willing to let God make the changes He wants to make....thus renewal with spiritual ground that God has let the plow go deep to the better soil that God gave us in the first place. Do not fear the plow. Ask for the plow, and a new outlook with a renewed vision will take place, and we will be usable soil ready for the seeds of righteousness. Let the plow run deep to the good soil and you will be amazed at what lies dormant there, but it is not just barely under the surface. It is Soul deep and ready to be serving from a heart of love for our Maker.

The Pilgrimage Continues,

David Warren