TODAY’S DEVOTION (TUESDAY 8TH NOVEMBER 2022)
“Those who sow in tears Shall reap in joy.
He who continually goes forth weeping, Bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, Bringing his sheaves with him.” Psalm 126:5-6 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 312TH DAY OF OUR YEAR OF AMAZING GRACE!
We bless the LORD our God for His marvelous deeds and glorious acts in our lives. Indeed, it is of His mercies that we are not consumed because His compassion fails not.
In other words, His compassion perpetuate itself. Day unto day we have seen what it can do. We have seen how great His mercies are towards those who fear Him.
We thank Him for keeping us alive and for taking care of our needs. We thank Him for the air in our lungs and food on our table.
We thank the LORD for being our very present help in time of trouble. We also thank Him for giving us a word every day on this platform. He have been speaking to us on practical wisdom and we have seen one major thing that will never happen to us if we do not walk in practical wisdom – honor.
I sense we continue on this flow of honor today. Because Honor is the foundation for so many things in the life of a human being. It is the catalyst of success in every area of life. We want to look closely on sowing it as a seed into the lives of others, because that is the problem of many.
Now, When we sow honor as a seed into the lives of others, especially our parents, we can even live long. The Bible says;
“Regard (treat with honor, due obedience, and courtesy) your father and mother, that your days may be long in the land the Lord your God gives you.” Exodus 20:12 AMPC
If we sow the seed of honor into the life of our parents, biological, spiritual and etc., it will bring the harvest of long life back to us.
One way We sow the seed of honor is by treating them with respect, care, decency, due obedience, and courtesy. Yes, its by taking care of their needs, especially in their time of vulnerability.
The Bible says;
“Hearken to your father, who begot you, and despise not your mother when she is old.” Proverbs 26:22 AMPC
When your parents are old, do not ever neglect them. In fact, we should not treat the aged, either they are our parents or not, with disregard. We are to sow seeds of honor into their lives by offering help wherever they need it, and whenever our paths cross.
Sadly, there are people who neglect their parents, the aged, and people GOD commands in His word that we treat with decency.
SOME DO NOT JUST NEGLECT THEM, THEY SOW SEEDS OF DISHONOR INTO THEIR LIVES.
They sow seeds of dishonor by disrespecting them, speaking to them rudely, using terrible choice of words, talking back at them, exposing their nakedness to others, denying them care when they need it, and even striving with them.
We are not to do any of that to those who bore us, either spiritually, biologically, financially, maritally, or socially.
Birthing or bringing forth is not easy. When God use someone to birth you into this life, or to birth you into a financially fortune, a marital life, or anything that added value to your life, you must learn to honor them.
You must learn to spend your days sowing seeds of honor into their lives. That is practical wisdom.
Absalom died premature because he did not honor his father David who bore him. In fact, he dishonored him greatly by striving with him and plotting against his throne craftily. He sowed seeds of dishonor by presenting himself better than his father to the ears of those who came seeking wisdom and direction from his father.
He executed a dangerous plan he was excited about. That is what some foolish hearts do today.
He would finally succeed in his plan, take over the throne, and sleep with his fathers concubines publicly (having concubines then was tolerated by the LORD). But all that lasted only for three months. He died like a dog, and became a standard of correction in Israel.
Be careful what you do to people who labored to bring you forth into biological life, spiritual life, ministry life, financial life, marital life and etc. Even when they are wrong, be careful how you react. You could destroy yourself with your reactions.
You could get angry and begin to sow seeds of dishonor into their life and destroy yourself. That is why the Bible says we may be angry but we should not sin.
YOU DO NOT ALLOW ANGER TO PUSH YOU TO SOW SEEDS OF DISHONOR INTO THE LIVES OF THOSE YOU SHOULD HONOR.
People who do not know how to control their anger or offences in such a way that it will not make them sow seeds of dishonor into the lives of those they should honor, will destroy themselves.
The job of a child, spiritual, biological, financial, marital or etc. is to spend their days sowing seeds of honor into their parents.
We have all kinds of parents. We have biological parents, political parents, spiritual parents, sometimes economic parents, and marital (those God used to birth us into marriage life). We are to spend our days sowing seeds of honor into their lives.
If possible, we are to even sow those seeds of honor with tears so that we can reap in joy. And this is one area many fail.
Our devotional text says;
“Those who sow in tears Shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping, Bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, Bringing his sheaves with him.” Psalm 126:5-6 NKJV
Yes, there are times when we sow the seed of honor into the lives of our parents (biological, spiritual, financial, political, marital) with tears. That is when the environment becomes tough – when honoring them calls for a sacrifice on our path.
You sow the seeds with tears during those moments.
For Hagar, it was when her mistress dealt with her and she ran that she was required to sow the seed of honor. The Bible says when the angel of the LORD met her, he commanded her to go back to the tough mistress and submit to her. She had previously withdrawn her seed of honor from her mistress when she became pregnant for Abram.
It was tough but she had to go. She had to go back home to sow the seed of honor with tears.
When our parent deal with us, when they rebuke and chastise us, God still commands that we submit to them, we sow seeds of honor into their lives. That is sowing with tears. And the Bible says we will be blessed by reaping with Joy.
Hagar was blessed because of that (Read Genesis 16 to 21). When she would finally give birth to Ishmael, and was later sent away by Abraham, God met her and made her and her Son great.
She became the first single mother in the Bible with a greatness from the LORD. If you read history you will realize that the woman became very great in life, I think and later married.
ALL THAT WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED IF SHE HAD NOT SOWN THE SEEDS OF HONOR IN TEARS.
They that sow in tears will reap in joy.
Her story teaches us that we do not sow seeds of honor into the lives of those we should only when it is convenient. We do it even when it is not convenient.
Another way you sow in tears is to minister to your parent when they become sick, weak, and unkempt.
Old age can reduce a man even to a little baby. That is a season when we are to sow seeds of honor into the lives of our parents, biological, spiritual, economical, political or marital. It is a sowing in tears because the circumstances are tough.
You do not allow what age has turned them into to hinder you from sowing the seeds of honor. In fact, that is when they need the seeds more.
Sadly, there are people who will see it shameful to even associate themselves with their parents when age or illness deal with them that way, or reduce them to wrecks or rags.
If you do not sow seeds of honor into their lives at that time, you are refusing to sow in tears, and you will not reap in joy.
Another times you sow in tears is when you do not have enough but you have to sustained your parents with the little you have. You must not deny them, you must honor them.
Do not forget, they also were not having enough when they were laying down for you, yet the laid down. Now it is your turn to sow in tears the way they sowed in tears to birth you into what or where you are now.
There is also the time when your parents may do what is shameful, like Noah did. You do not abandon the principle of sowing seeds of honor at that time, you keep to it. It may bring out tears from your eyes or pain from your heart, you still must still seed honor into their lives.
Yes, you must keep to the principle because the LORD says so, and because you also had your own time of doing what was shameful as a child, and they covered and ministered to you as well.
What is shameful is always classified as nakedness.
You do not uncover your father’s nakedness (not wickedness) when you need to cover it like Ham did to Noah his father. You cover it; you seed seeds of honor. It was not wicked for Noah to drink and get so drunk in that age, but it was naked.
IT STRIPPED HIM OF HONOR AS A FATHER.
Fathers should not do whatever will stripe them of honor, but when they do, we are to cover not uncover them. That is how to sow seeds of honor.
It was what the other two sons of Noah understood.
They seeded seeds of honor into their father’s life when it was not convenient. The sowed in tears because their father did the shameful, and God made sure they reaped in Joy.
But the son who first saw his father’s need for cover refused to sow the seed of honor by covering him – he refused to sow in tears. Sadly, he reaped curses instead.
Now, in terms of covering parental figures, understand that it is their nakedness (vulnerabilities – things they did or do, not because they are wicked or sinful but because they became vulnerable) that we cover, not their wickedness.
The Bible is clearly against covering wickedness. It will destroy both you and them.
Jonathan died because he covered his father’s wickedness by staying with him. David survived because her refuse to cover it by staying with him.
Do not forget Saul was a mentoring father figure to David and a Biological father to Jonathan. When he became wicked towards the LORD, and threw spares at both David and Jonathan at different occasions, David did what needed to be done to such fathers, he departed from him. But Jonathan did not. He would later die with him.
Understand that, you do not seed honor into your father or parental figures by covering their wickedness. It will kill everyone. You seed honor into them by respectfully confronting them in other to help them cure the wickedness. If you cannot confront them, take them to a higher biological or spiritual authority they are accountable to.
However, if you are not in position to do either, you are to walk away like David did and grow away until you enter into destiny.
GOD WILL GIVE YOU ANOTHER FATHER FIGURE TO HONOR.
There is so much we can glean on this beautiful topic of seeding honor into parental figures in our lives. However, that is how much we can take.
But do not forget what the Bible says under the new covenant. It says;
Children, obey your parents in the Lord [as His representatives], for this is just and right (this is a reference to spiritual parents).
Honor (esteem and value as precious) your father and your mother—this is the first commandment with a promise—That all may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth (this is a reference to biological parents).
Fathers, do not irritate and provoke your children to anger [do not exasperate them to resentment], but rear them [tenderly] in the training and discipline and the counsel and admonition of the Lord.
Servants (slaves), be obedient to those who are your physical masters, having respect for them and eager concern to please them, in singleness of motive and with all your heart, as [service] to Christ [Himself]— (this is a reference to financial parents or those who we work for) Ephesians 6:1-5 AMPC (Emphasis mine)
In this scripture, we see how God commands that we treat three kinds of parents; spiritual parents, biological parents, and financial parent or those we work for. They are all good soils for our seeds of honor.
If we do not treat them well by sowing seeds of honor into their lives, we are putting God in a position not to bless us with long life and other things that make earthly life beautiful.
We also see how God commanded parents (biological, spiritual, financial or etc.) to treat their children. They are not to provoke their children. Meaning, they are to create the enabling environment for them to obey the LORD and sow seeds of honor into their lives.
Sadly, many parents destroy the lives of their children by not doing that.
Some sleep with them, others denies them care, some others hinder them from following the LORD and make life difficult for them. They do things that do not create the ideal environment for their children to spend their days sowing seeds of honor into their lives. God is against all that.
For instance, if a parent does not lay down for their children when they are young, how will the children lay down for the parent when the parent will be old? It may be impossible. We are not to put our children in a state where they find it difficult to sow seeds of honor into our lives.
May the LORD use these words to keep building us up and giving us an inheritance among they that are sanctified. Amen!
MAKE THIS SCRIPTURE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY!
“So it happened the next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.
And they stripped him and took his head and his armor, and sent word throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim the news in the temple of their idols and among the people.
Then they put his armor in the temple of their gods, and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon.
And when all Jabesh Gilead heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant men arose and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons; and they brought them to Jabesh, and buried their bones under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.
So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD, and also because he consulted a medium for guidance.
But he did not inquire of the LORD; therefore He killed him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse”. 1 Chronicles 10:8-14