Ecclesiastes 11:4 has always been an insightful scripture to me. As I read it today, I thought about it in an entirely different way.
The scripture says, “He that observes the wind will not sow, he who regards the clouds will not reap.”
I have often written on this scripture. Previous writings have focused on the part that says he who observes the wind will not sow.
What does that mean exactly? It means that you may want to give to God. You may desire to sow into the Kingdom of God. You may even purpose in your heart to give. However, if you begin to look at the economy, or your bills, you may change your mind about sowing. Why? Because all these things are wind.
But that is not the part I want to talk about today. Today, I want to look at the second part of this scripture. He who regards the clouds will not reap.
I have always known that if you did not sow you would not reap. It’s simple, common knowledge. I’ve also thought if you sow, you will reap. Yet, I find that many people are sowing and still not reaping a harvest.
Now for most of you I believe that you are in a time where you are about to begin to reap from the seeds you have sown. As a ministry, we are pressing in by faith for your harvest. Yet, are there times when we need evaluate what is going on with our harvest?
The scripture says, if we regard the clouds, we will not reap. What does that mean?
It means if we look at anything besides what the word of God says we will not reap. When I looked up the word ‘clouds’ one meaning was darkness. If we set our eyes on what the enemy is saying about our harvest or our seed sown, it can hinder our harvest. It can delay our time of reaping.
You sow your seed in faith. You know God led you to sow. You are believing for a harvest. Time passes, or circumstances change, and you begin to question how it could happen. You begin to wonder if it will be like you first believed it would.
Perhaps you sow your seed believing God your harvest will come through a promotion. Suddenly you get laid off, now you can’t figure out how it could possibly happen. You begin to look at the clouds. You begin to look at the dark circumstances rather than look at what God says about your seed sown.
So, what has God said? Those who sow, will reap. Therefore, keep your eyes and your mind on that truth and nothing else. Your seed will produce exactly what it was sent for, if you stand in faith.
As I dug a little deeper, I found the word ‘clouds’ comes from a root word, becloud. It means to cover with a cloud.
I love this! You see, your seed is producing a harvest. Perhaps that harvest is ripe even now. That harvest may just be covered with a cloud. It may be hidden. Not from you. For you.
I love what Bill Johnson says about the hidden things of God. He says it’s like when he hides Easter eggs for his grandkids. He isn’t hiding them from them. He is hiding them for them. He hides them so they can be found. So, it is with God.
Ask God to reveal your harvest to you. To allow you to see it with your eyes. In 2 Kings 6:17, Elisha prayed for God to open the eyes of his servant. Why? So that he could see what Elisha saw. So that he could see what was happening in the spirit. God answered that pray for Elisha. He will do the same for you.
If you observe the winds, you will not sow. This is true. If you look at the economy, or your needs, you will not sow. If you don’t sow, you have no harvest coming.
However, we must go one step further. You must also refuse to regard the clouds. Once your seed is in the ground, you can’t observe the clouds. You must water those seeds daily with the word of God. You must refuse to look at anything other than what the word of God says about your harvest.
Jesus is LORD of the Harvest. We keep our focus on Him. While our seed is in the ground, we keep our trust in Him. We look to nothing else. We refuse to look at lack. We refuse to look at darkness. We refuse to look at anything from the enemy. We refuse to allow our mind to be covered with a cloud of doubt. We look only to the word of God.
It is my prayer that each of us will come into the knowledge of the truth. And we will experience the blessings of God in our finances. It is my prayer that each of you will experience the abundance God has for you. It begins with observing His word and His word alone, concerning finances.
Meditate on this!
Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. Galatians 6:7
