Outdo one another in showing honor.
-Romans 12:10
For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous;
With favor You will surround him as with a shield.
-Psalm 5:12
For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
the LORD bestows favor and honor...
-Psalm 84:11
As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
day and night
will never cease.
- Genesis 8:22
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.
A man reaps what he sows.
Whoever sows to please their flesh,
from the flesh will reap destruction;
whoever sows to please the Spirit,
from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
-Galatians 6:7, 8
“I will betroth you to Me forever;
Yes, I will betroth you to Me
In righteousness and justice,
In lovingkindness and mercy;
I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness,
And you shall know the LORD.
It shall come to pass in that day
That I will answer,” says the LORD;
“ I will answer the heavens,
And they shall answer the earth.
The earth shall answer
With grain,
With new wine,
And with oil;
They shall answer Jezreel.
Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth....”
-Hosea 2:19-23
-Romans 12:10
For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous;
With favor You will surround him as with a shield.
-Psalm 5:12
For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
the LORD bestows favor and honor...
-Psalm 84:11
As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
day and night
will never cease.
- Genesis 8:22
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.
A man reaps what he sows.
Whoever sows to please their flesh,
from the flesh will reap destruction;
whoever sows to please the Spirit,
from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
-Galatians 6:7, 8
“I will betroth you to Me forever;
Yes, I will betroth you to Me
In righteousness and justice,
In lovingkindness and mercy;
I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness,
And you shall know the LORD.
It shall come to pass in that day
That I will answer,” says the LORD;
“ I will answer the heavens,
And they shall answer the earth.
The earth shall answer
With grain,
With new wine,
And with oil;
They shall answer Jezreel.
Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth....”
-Hosea 2:19-23
In just a few hours September will say good-bye, and once again, I choose a name for this month.
The word Jezreel readily comes up.
How I love this word! It literally means, "God will sow."
What an appropriate name indeed!
While meditating on the word Jezreel, many thoughts come rushing to the surface of my mind. I share them here with my dear blog readers, my way of paying tribute to this month, in gratitude for the handcrafted lessons that September leaves behind.
It is also my way of doing a spiritual inventory even as I share my thoughts candidly, just as they come... unedited and unadulterated. An honest sharing from the heart, together with the raw emotions I feel in response to how God worked in my life this month.
As the year 2010 was ending, my Father gave me a word about the coming new year. He said that 2011 was going to be my Year of Promotion.
When God speaks a word to me, I usually tuck it away in a little corner of my mind... until something happens that prompts me to pull this word out from its hiding place, and receive fresh encouragement from it.
So the word "promotion" has been hidden in that corner all these months, until this evening.
When I heard the word Jezreel as my name for this month, the word "promotion" also came up.
"Hmmm... a rather strange combination," I thought at first. But the more I thought about the connection between these two words, the more I realized that what has been happening this past month is definitely more than just mere coincidence.
These past four weeks there were many opportunities for me to sow new seeds in the seedbed of my heart and in those of people around me.
There were opportune re-connections that happened as well, where friends I had not seen for a long time suddenly came into the picture again, and God used them to sow seeds of hope into my life!
In Genesis 8:22, God institutes the Law of Seedtime and Harvest. Everything on this earth operates on that law - what we sow is what we reap.
However, there is another law that God also instituted even from the time of creation, and that is the Law of Multiplication. That law states that whatever we sow is not harvested in the same quantity... we reap much, much more than what we sow.
This is surely an encouragement.
However, it can work disastrously as well! If we truly understood this law, we would be more watchful over the kind of things we sow.
People with business acumen know how this principle works. They invest their money in good business ventures expecting to receive a profit from it.
But money is not the only seed there is. Heaven's economy uses other kinds of currencies.
Obviously, actions are seeds. When we sow an act of kindness, kindness comes back to us in many ways.
Thoughts are seeds, so are attitudes. When we sow anger, we do not only reap anger... we reap bitterness... we reap rage. As Hosea 8:7 says:
When we sow acceptance and unconditional love, we also reap so much more -- we reap honor, respect, harmony, unity. We can never demand love and gratitude from another person, but love freely given, without strings attached, will always come back to us when we least expect it!
Words are seeds, too.
Proverbs 18:21 clearly follows this law of seedtime and harvest:
Sow a thought, reap an act;
Sow an act, reap a habit;
Sow a habit, reap a character;
Sow a character, reap a destiny.
- Charles Reade
The word Jezreel readily comes up.
How I love this word! It literally means, "God will sow."
What an appropriate name indeed!
While meditating on the word Jezreel, many thoughts come rushing to the surface of my mind. I share them here with my dear blog readers, my way of paying tribute to this month, in gratitude for the handcrafted lessons that September leaves behind.
It is also my way of doing a spiritual inventory even as I share my thoughts candidly, just as they come... unedited and unadulterated. An honest sharing from the heart, together with the raw emotions I feel in response to how God worked in my life this month.
As the year 2010 was ending, my Father gave me a word about the coming new year. He said that 2011 was going to be my Year of Promotion.
When God speaks a word to me, I usually tuck it away in a little corner of my mind... until something happens that prompts me to pull this word out from its hiding place, and receive fresh encouragement from it.
So the word "promotion" has been hidden in that corner all these months, until this evening.
When I heard the word Jezreel as my name for this month, the word "promotion" also came up.
"Hmmm... a rather strange combination," I thought at first. But the more I thought about the connection between these two words, the more I realized that what has been happening this past month is definitely more than just mere coincidence.
These past four weeks there were many opportunities for me to sow new seeds in the seedbed of my heart and in those of people around me.
There were opportune re-connections that happened as well, where friends I had not seen for a long time suddenly came into the picture again, and God used them to sow seeds of hope into my life!
In Genesis 8:22, God institutes the Law of Seedtime and Harvest. Everything on this earth operates on that law - what we sow is what we reap.
However, there is another law that God also instituted even from the time of creation, and that is the Law of Multiplication. That law states that whatever we sow is not harvested in the same quantity... we reap much, much more than what we sow.
This is surely an encouragement.
However, it can work disastrously as well! If we truly understood this law, we would be more watchful over the kind of things we sow.
People with business acumen know how this principle works. They invest their money in good business ventures expecting to receive a profit from it.
But money is not the only seed there is. Heaven's economy uses other kinds of currencies.
Obviously, actions are seeds. When we sow an act of kindness, kindness comes back to us in many ways.
Thoughts are seeds, so are attitudes. When we sow anger, we do not only reap anger... we reap bitterness... we reap rage. As Hosea 8:7 says:
They sow the wind and reap the whirlwind...
When we sow acceptance and unconditional love, we also reap so much more -- we reap honor, respect, harmony, unity. We can never demand love and gratitude from another person, but love freely given, without strings attached, will always come back to us when we least expect it!
Words are seeds, too.
Proverbs 18:21 clearly follows this law of seedtime and harvest:
Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit.
And those who love it will eat its fruit.
The words I speak have power to bear the fruit of death... or of life. The choice is mine: the fruit I eat, be it the fruit of death or the fruit of life, depends on the kind of seed words I have sown.
I can speak life and health to my body by the words I declare over it from day to day. My body hears, and my body responds accordingly.
Following the same principle, I can speak life and health to my relationships by the words I speak. Our words do not fall on deaf ears. Even words that are spoken beyond the hearing of another person can reach the spirit and soul of that person.
How this happens can be explained by using a simple analogy, that of sound waves. When we speak, the words are released into the atmosphere and are received as sound vibrations. The vibrations continue, very much like the ripples on the water created by a stone thrown into it.
The fact of the matter is this: the words we speak about another are like arrows. Sooner or later they hit the target, whether we intend for this to happen or not!
I believe that our words do not return to us empty. They come back with the fruit of death, or the fruit of life! They are seeds that have been sown, and it is only a matter of time before the fruits of our words manifest.
It was many years ago when I first understood that the principle of sowing and reaping applies to anything I do, think or say. It is a natural law, but it is also a spiritual law, and I have taken this principle to heart.
Of course I must admit that I have failed many times, but my earnest desire is to keep growing in this very important area. Jesus Himself says in Matthew 12:33-37 --
These are strong words! Thus, I consider the words that come out of my mouth as sacred matter with eternal consequences. I ask God to help me be willing and quick to admit where I have done wrong, rather than make excuses ... to repent before God, confess my sin, and renounce the power of careless words I may have knowingly or unknowingly released.
And, it always helps to know that God is able to redeem our mistakes, and forgive us our iniquities. All He is looking for is a humble, contrite heart.
In light of what I have just written, this has been an extraordinary month for me and my whole family.
We are facing new lessons, new challenges.
In the natural, it may look like the enemy has gained the upper hand.
But indeed, looks can be deceiving. God has an entirely different perspective from which He views our lives!
I am waiting to see how the events of my life will unfold before my eyes.
As always, my desire is to be a channel of blessing, a speaker of truth, a life-giver to anyone God sends my way.
I am once again being led of God to move out of my cherished positions of comfort and convenience... and to be honest, if I wanted to, I could allow myself to feel weighed down, or disheartened.
If I wanted to.
But I don't want to...
I consider it an honor and a privilege to be taught from first hand experience... to look at the recent events, not with doubt and confusion, but with renewed faith and hope.
In everything I do, the choice remains with me. Am I sowing seeds of trust... seeds of hope, seeds of obedience... seeds of compassion and understanding... seeds of forgiveness?
The kind of words I sow into the life of another person will determine how that person relates to me... the fruit of my relationship with another person is determined by the kind of seed I sow into that life!
The words of Gerry Osbron, the American pastor who has deeply impacted my life during the early years of my life as a married woman, will never be erased from my heart. He said, "When we refuse to forgive a person for a perceived wrong deed, or a perceived act of injustice, we burn the very bridge over which we ourselves will someday pass."
I choose to sow seeds of forgiveness today.
I also choose to sow seeds of honor.
A few days ago, two friends of mine and I got together for an important reason: We wanted to impart words of honor to one another, to build around one another a shield of honor that will protect us from the fiery darts of the demonic spirit of jealousy that the enemy seeks to throw at us more often than we are aware of it.
The spirit of jealousy kills, steals, and destroys.
But imparting honor, speaking life to others builds up our spiritual immune systems. It builds up a strong armor of protection shielding us from enemy attack in this area.
The Dancing Ducks: "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord!"
When we speak words of honor to another person, acknowledging that person's Godly character, affirming him or her in terms of the call of God on their life, proclaiming the good things that you know about that one, it is like a shield, and the enemy cannot wreak havoc or bring destruction into that person's life.
Rosemarie, Tina and me: sowing seed words of honor.
These dear friends of mine have given me unconditional love.
Speaking words of honor to another dismantles the lies of the enemy. It is walking in the opposite direction of the enemy. It is walking in the direction of heaven, and propels that person towards His God given calling and eternal destiny.
Arthur Burk writes:
Truly, it has been an amazing month for me. I have never walked this way before. It amazes me as I realize that just a month ago, I wrote these words on a blog entry (see Re-creating Your Environment):
Through the recent circumstances of this month God was showing me the value of sowing seeds of honor in the life of others!
And to make everything even more meaningful, God spoke these beautiful words to me tonight:
This, My child, is the way of promotion. The way up is the way down. The land of your wounding is the land of your anointing. I am the God who doesn't sleep. I see what you are going through. No weapon forged against you will prosper, but you will rise up, you will be promoted, to refute every lie that the enemy speaks against you. In this season, call on My powerful name, Father of the fatherless... Defender of widows. I will surely answer. "
My Father reminds me that when I sow in hope, in the midst of my difficult hour, there is a harvest of joy that awaits me. My life story may have several chapters of pain coming from unexpected places... but then deep joy... new growth... and a bountiful harvest come from those unexpected places as well!
What a beautiful ending to an unusual month. It fills my cup to overflowing... and with my cup brimming over with these words of honor, words of promise and hope, as September comes to an end, I am ready to face another month.
And by God's enabling grace, I am ready to sow seeds of honor in the lives of those around me knowing that the day will come when God will spread the sheaves from my plentiful harvest before my very eyes!
I can speak life and health to my body by the words I declare over it from day to day. My body hears, and my body responds accordingly.
Following the same principle, I can speak life and health to my relationships by the words I speak. Our words do not fall on deaf ears. Even words that are spoken beyond the hearing of another person can reach the spirit and soul of that person.
How this happens can be explained by using a simple analogy, that of sound waves. When we speak, the words are released into the atmosphere and are received as sound vibrations. The vibrations continue, very much like the ripples on the water created by a stone thrown into it.
The fact of the matter is this: the words we speak about another are like arrows. Sooner or later they hit the target, whether we intend for this to happen or not!
I believe that our words do not return to us empty. They come back with the fruit of death, or the fruit of life! They are seeds that have been sown, and it is only a matter of time before the fruits of our words manifest.
It was many years ago when I first understood that the principle of sowing and reaping applies to anything I do, think or say. It is a natural law, but it is also a spiritual law, and I have taken this principle to heart.
Of course I must admit that I have failed many times, but my earnest desire is to keep growing in this very important area. Jesus Himself says in Matthew 12:33-37 --
“Either make the tree good and its fruit good,
or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad;
for a tree is known by its fruit.
Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things?
For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart
brings forth good things,
and an evil man out of the evil treasure
brings forth evil things.
But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak,
they will give account of it in the day of judgment.
For by your words you will be justified,
and by your words you will be condemned.”
or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad;
for a tree is known by its fruit.
Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things?
For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart
brings forth good things,
and an evil man out of the evil treasure
brings forth evil things.
But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak,
they will give account of it in the day of judgment.
For by your words you will be justified,
and by your words you will be condemned.”
These are strong words! Thus, I consider the words that come out of my mouth as sacred matter with eternal consequences. I ask God to help me be willing and quick to admit where I have done wrong, rather than make excuses ... to repent before God, confess my sin, and renounce the power of careless words I may have knowingly or unknowingly released.
And, it always helps to know that God is able to redeem our mistakes, and forgive us our iniquities. All He is looking for is a humble, contrite heart.
In light of what I have just written, this has been an extraordinary month for me and my whole family.
We are facing new lessons, new challenges.
In the natural, it may look like the enemy has gained the upper hand.
But indeed, looks can be deceiving. God has an entirely different perspective from which He views our lives!
I am waiting to see how the events of my life will unfold before my eyes.
As always, my desire is to be a channel of blessing, a speaker of truth, a life-giver to anyone God sends my way.
I am once again being led of God to move out of my cherished positions of comfort and convenience... and to be honest, if I wanted to, I could allow myself to feel weighed down, or disheartened.
If I wanted to.
But I don't want to...
I consider it an honor and a privilege to be taught from first hand experience... to look at the recent events, not with doubt and confusion, but with renewed faith and hope.
In everything I do, the choice remains with me. Am I sowing seeds of trust... seeds of hope, seeds of obedience... seeds of compassion and understanding... seeds of forgiveness?
The kind of words I sow into the life of another person will determine how that person relates to me... the fruit of my relationship with another person is determined by the kind of seed I sow into that life!
The words of Gerry Osbron, the American pastor who has deeply impacted my life during the early years of my life as a married woman, will never be erased from my heart. He said, "When we refuse to forgive a person for a perceived wrong deed, or a perceived act of injustice, we burn the very bridge over which we ourselves will someday pass."
I choose to sow seeds of forgiveness today.
I also choose to sow seeds of honor.
A few days ago, two friends of mine and I got together for an important reason: We wanted to impart words of honor to one another, to build around one another a shield of honor that will protect us from the fiery darts of the demonic spirit of jealousy that the enemy seeks to throw at us more often than we are aware of it.
The spirit of jealousy kills, steals, and destroys.
But imparting honor, speaking life to others builds up our spiritual immune systems. It builds up a strong armor of protection shielding us from enemy attack in this area.
The Dancing Ducks: "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord!"
Rosemarie, Tina and me: sowing seed words of honor.These dear friends of mine have given me unconditional love.
Speaking words of honor to another dismantles the lies of the enemy. It is walking in the opposite direction of the enemy. It is walking in the direction of heaven, and propels that person towards His God given calling and eternal destiny.
Arthur Burk writes:
As a basic protection in a ministry, giving honor to each other needs to be a core value.
We have learned to weed out of our language a thousand little things that are dishonoring comments. We don't mean them to be dishonoring since those comments are a part of our culture. [Ours] is a culture rife with dishonor. We make it an art form. Our talk shows are very degrading and dishonoring most of the time. Our public media celebrates dishonor and dishonorable things. Consequently, we have had to come in the opposite spirit in the extreme to learn how to weed those words out of our vocabulary.
Even further than that, we have learned how to express honor. We have learned how to recognize the hand of God in other individuals. In what used to be routine conversations we now recognize the presence of God, His purposes, His hand in circumstances, and His blessings on an individuals life.
An excerpt from Spirit of Jealousy, by Arthur Burk
Truly, it has been an amazing month for me. I have never walked this way before. It amazes me as I realize that just a month ago, I wrote these words on a blog entry (see Re-creating Your Environment):
Honor is the language and conduct of royalty!
Showing honor is the mark of nobility and kingly status! With my words I want to weave a tapestry of beautiful memories to warm the hearts of those I will someday leave behind.
Through the recent circumstances of this month God was showing me the value of sowing seeds of honor in the life of others!
And to make everything even more meaningful, God spoke these beautiful words to me tonight:
This, My child, is the way of promotion. The way up is the way down. The land of your wounding is the land of your anointing. I am the God who doesn't sleep. I see what you are going through. No weapon forged against you will prosper, but you will rise up, you will be promoted, to refute every lie that the enemy speaks against you. In this season, call on My powerful name, Father of the fatherless... Defender of widows. I will surely answer. "
My Father reminds me that when I sow in hope, in the midst of my difficult hour, there is a harvest of joy that awaits me. My life story may have several chapters of pain coming from unexpected places... but then deep joy... new growth... and a bountiful harvest come from those unexpected places as well!
Those who sow with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
carrying sheaves with them.
will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
carrying sheaves with them.
- Psalm 126:5, 6
What a beautiful ending to an unusual month. It fills my cup to overflowing... and with my cup brimming over with these words of honor, words of promise and hope, as September comes to an end, I am ready to face another month.
And by God's enabling grace, I am ready to sow seeds of honor in the lives of those around me knowing that the day will come when God will spread the sheaves from my plentiful harvest before my very eyes!
Sow a thought, reap an act;
Sow an act, reap a habit;
Sow a habit, reap a character;
Sow a character, reap a destiny.
- Charles Reade
