Thoughts

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Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”John 4:35-38 NKJV

"There are still four months and then comes the harvest" was a proverb in that time. It meant,"What's your hurry? There's plenty of time." Jesus did not want the disciples to have this attitude. He wanted them to see that "time is of the essence". You never know when someone's last day on earth will be, beloved. *Today* is the day of salvation! No one is guaranteed tomorrow.

Jesus said,

"Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!" "White for harvest" was a sign that the wheat is ready to be harvested. 

As I look at what's happening around the country and around the world, I see signs that people are looking for answers. Politicians don't have answers. So-called "health experts" don't have answers. There are no answers at the bottom of a bottle, in a syringe or in a joint. There are no answers that satisfy, outside of God. Jesus said, "I am the Way, and the Truth and the Life." 

Have you seen the show on Disney+ called the Mandalorian? He's made the phrase, "This is the way," famous. Sorry, but he does not have "the Way". Jesus IS the Way.

The field is white unto harvest, beloved. As the seasons and the weather bring the wheat into being ready for harvest, the conditions in our world are making people ready to hear the Gospel. Jesus is the answer for people looking for meaning and stability. 

We are living in conditions that just over a year ago no one could have predicted, aren't we? Lockdowns. Social distancing. Masks. You can't visit loved ones in the hospital. Schools are closed. Suicides are at record levels. On and on it goes, and we don't know when life will every get back to normal. 

God was not taken by surprise. And Jesus can still be closer than a brother. Even in the midst of chaos and despair, Jesus' promise holds true, "Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world."

He said, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

Don't you think people are ready to hear these promises? Of course they are. They need the assurance that there is One who is there. As David said, "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold."

Beloved, there has never been a better time to bring the message of salvation. Today is the day. The fields are ready for harvest. 

Today's Bible Translation

Bible translation used in today's episode: Ch. 3 ERV, Ch. 4 NKJV

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