“To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1
As I awoke this morning, the Lord gave me a word: “In the fullness of time.” As I stumbled to the coffee pot, I asked the Lord to bring me revelation of that Word. When I opened my devotional, Streams in the Desert, one of the Scripture verses for the day was in Galatians 4:4, “when the time had fully come.” So, I knew the Lord was bringing this to my attention for a reason, for my life as well as someone who is reading this.
When gardening, we can watch the fullness of time come. I know from experience that we reap a harvest of what we have sown in our garden. In the fullness of time, or in an appointed amount of time, the seeds that have been sown will spring forth. The fullness of time is the time of harvest. There is an appointed amount of time according to the seed that has been sown. Ecclesiastes 3:2 says there is a time to plant and a time to harvest what was planted.
Think for a minute of the spiritual seeds you have planted. I like to think of my children as my flower garden. I love to watch them grow and bloom. The harvest in a flower garden is the flowers. You too may have a garden either natural or spiritual, and the only thing that is between you and your harvest, is time. A certain amount of time has been appointed for the seeds you have planted to produce a harvest. Harvest time is “the fullness of time.”
Just recently I experienced how you can know it is the fullness of time. My husband and I have a vegetable garden. We have enjoyed watching every stage of its growth and we are patiently waiting for the time of harvest. The squash has produced more than enough for our family; it has been an abundant harvest. However, the harvest of corn has been different even though they are planted side by side. My husband saw the brown silks on the corn and knew that the fullness of time had come. I was so excited when I saw him walking across the yard with an ear of corn in his hand. But, it was not full enough to eat. “Can we just leave the corn on the stalk and let it grow longer until it fills out?” I asked. No, he explained to me that once the silk turns brown, you know it has stopped growing and it is time for harvest.
When we planted the seeds, it was very dry. Someone told us if we soaked the ground every other day that it would be sufficient water. But we have found it wasn’t enough for the corn. If we had watered the seeds every day after they were first planted, the harvest would have been better.
Wow, we learned a valuable lesson about gardening and our spiritual life as well. Freshly planted seeds require daily water; some more than others. Think about the seeds you have recently planted. I’m not talking about corn; I am talking about spiritual seeds. Parents, if you have recently planted seeds in your children (no matter how old they are), you may want to heed a gardener’s advice and water those seeds every day. Pour out your love every day to water the seeds. Watch and water daily, and in the fullness of time, you will reap an abundant harvest! If you have just harvested a blessing, send us a note; we would love to hear about your harvest.