You shall reap

And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. - Galatians 6v9

Sometimes when you read a passage you want to see the theological significance. Sometimes you want to draw out a practical application. Sometimes you want to pick a verse apart and catch every subtle mysterious hidden truth. But sometimes God uses a passage to work in a very personal and real way that goes beyond word studies and exegesis. I don’t know how to explain it, but I think most of us know what I am talking about.

A few years ago the ministry here was in deep struggles. We were depressed, discouraged, and ready to quit. Over and over I felt like it was time to cut and run.

God used His word in my heart almost daily to remind of who He is and keep my eyes on Him. During one particularly rough spell, when no one was coming to church or Bible study and I was suffered with feet problems I came across this verse in my own personal morning devotions – “Be not weary in well doing, for in due season you will reap if you faint not.” Some of our children were still quite young. During our morning family devotions the key verse was – “Be not weary in well doing, for in due season you shall reap if you faint not.” I was uplifted and encouraged. Our youngest, Eoin, was still quite young so I did devotions with him in the evening. We used the children’s devotional “Keys for Kids.” The story that night was about a boy and his grandfather out fishing. The little boy wanted to move because the fish were not biting. His granddad convinced them to fish successfully you can’t keep moving but keep at it and be patient. The key verse at the end of the story was, you guessed it, “Be not weary in well doing, for in due season you shall reap if you faint not.”

I got the point. God did not want us to move. He did not want us to quit. I told my wife that night that God’s promises are true. We might not reap until we get to heaven, but we will reap. I won’t say that all of my doubts and fears ended that night. I won’t say that I will never have those doubts and fears again. But I do those this – I am not to grow weary in doing good, for in God’s own due season I will reap if I don’t quit.