As I was studying this morning a scripture caught my attention. It is found in Ecclesiastes 11:4. I am going to share it with you from the Amplified Bible:
He who observes the wind and waits for all conditions to be favorable will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.
Scriptures like this one often convict my heart. Sometimes we go through seasons that are hard financially and our sowing will decrease – not even because we want it to – but because we know what we will need to get by, so we often cut back on our seed. Or our sowing.
The Bible says that we are not supposed to look at what we see to determine whether we sow or not. This scripture says when we observe the wind, we will not sow.
This takes me to the New Testament where Jesus was walking on water and Peter said, “Lord, if that is You, bid me come.” Of course, Jesus said, “Come.” And Peter walked on water. Other than Jesus no man has ever walked on water besides Peter before or since. But the Bible says when Peter looked at the wind and the waves, he became afraid, and he began to sink.
This is the same principle. If in our giving, we begin to look at the wind – we begin to look at our circumstances – we begin to look at our bank account, we become afraid and we begin to sink. The only way we can sink in our reaping is if we sink in our sowing or stop giving.
We are a people who walk by faith and not by sight. We don’t walk by what we see – we walk by what we know to be truth. And what we know is what the Word of God declares. Give and it shall be given unto you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over.
You see, only fear would cause you to back up on what God has told you to do. I once heard a powerful statement: Feelings are fleeting, they come and then they are gone. But it is my will that determines my outcome and my choices in life.
You see, these feelings of fear, we must refuse to allow them to determine our outcome. Nothing will determine our choices but God’s way of doing things. If we obey His Word.
Once we make that determination, we can stop looking at the wind, we stop speaking based on what we see with our natural eyes and we begin to respond based on what the Word of God says. We stop saying, “I can’t” and realize “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Then, like Peter, we begin to walk on water.
The remainder of this scripture says, “He who regards the clouds, will not reap.”
One thing determines whether we reap or not – that’s our obedience to sow, regardless of what it looks like, regardless of the circumstances. You must stop looking with your natural eyes and begin to see with your spiritual eyes. God sees things differently than man does. Man may say it is one way, but God says it is another way and God always has the final say.
Look in Luke 1:36, when the angel was speaking to Mary about Jesus. Then he said, “Elizabeth shall also bear a son – she who man called barren is already in her sixth month.” Man may call you barren, but God will call you fruitful and will give you the child to prove it.
Man may call you poor, but God calls you rich and He will bring forth the fruit to prove it if you will do things His way. Man may say you have lack, but God says you have abundance for every good work. Man may say you can’t give, you don’t have enough, but God says when you give, I will cause men and women to give back to you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over. The only question is: who do you believe? As for me and my house, we believe the Word of the Lord.
