How to Honor God in Your Harvest Season

Everyone wants a blessed life, but we can’t overlook the truth that blessings come with a responsibility that can sometimes be heavy to maintain. In today’s video, learn how to honor God in your harvest season by keeping Him your priority no matter how blessed you are. Enjoy!

As I grew our email list for Beloved Women, I started an account that would manage all of our contacts for free. However, this service was only free until we got to a certain amount of contacts. 2000 to be exact, and I felt like that was just such a huge number of email subscribers that we had plenty of time before we had to worry about paying for their service. As we continued to consistently put out content and grow the ministry, we soon hit that 2000 email subscriber mark. I was so excited about this however I had to start thinking about how we would generate the income to support a growing email list because now, the more email subscribers we obtained, the more money we would have to pay. It was a lesson that taught me that oftentimes when we receive what we desire or prayed for, there is still a necessary level of work that has to be done to maintain it. This is what we have to realize when God has called us to a harvest season. 

When we reap the benefits and blessings of a harvest season, that's a good thing, but it doesn't come without work to maintain it. You finally got that marriage that you prayed for your entire life, but guess what? Now it's time to put in the work to have a healthy relationship with your husband. You prayed and prepared for those kids, and now that you have them, it's time to raise them. You desperately wanted to get your own home, but now is the time to make sure that you put in the work to upkeep and maintain your home. The harvest season is everyone's favorite season. It’s what we’ve been working up to. In a harvest season, you are reaping the benefits and blessings from seeds that you planted in previous seasons. This also means that you're in a very busy season that demands much of your time, energy, and strength.

Fruit develops in a harvest season, but remember, fruit has to be harvested. It has to be picked and cleaned, and depending on how much you have, it can be heavy. We often forget that the blessing of a harvest season comes with real responsibility, but the growth we experience in the wilderness, growing and pruning seasons have prepared us for harvest. Still, we can’t forget that just because harvest is a blessing doesn’t mean it’s easy because it’s not.  As you may feel overwhelmed at times in a harvest season, it's important to remember how blessed you are and that it's time to be a good steward of what the Lord has given you. Remember, you prayed for these blessings, and now you may enjoy the fruit of those blessings. 

The work required to maintain a harvest season can lead many to think that to accomplish more, we need to do more, we need to work our fingers to the bones, or we need to hustle harder. But Jesus tells us, the only way to bear fruit is to remain in Him and He in us. He says:

Praying, reading our bible, and going to church are not wastes of time, and they do not take away from our productivity. Quite the opposite. These are the ways we stay fruitful, otherwise, we find ourselves doing a lot of busy work. 

Didn't you hate when you had a substitute teacher in school who only gave you busy work? But as we get older, we seem to like busy work, meaningless work for the sake of saying we are doing something. But we only have one life; we should use it wisely, we should make it count, make it fruitful, and that only happens when we remain in Christ. Remaining in Christ is the difference between busy work and meaningful fruit. 

If you're feeling a little discouraged and stressed in your harvest season, take it one day at a time, knowing that God has given you much because He trusts you with much. The temptation in a harvest season is to get so caught up in our blessings that we forget to cling to God.

It is so important not to become complacent in this season simply because things are going well. We still need to seek God like we would in any other season. So remember where your blessings come from and continue to keep your eyes on Jesus no matter what season you are facing.

Today’s video is part of a series called “Growing Closer to God in Any Season,” where we’re leading about how to trust God in a wilderness, pruning, growing, or harvest seasons. Take my “Spiritual Seasons” quiz to learn which of the 4 spiritual seasons you are in, and be sure to comment on to this video and let me know your results. 

If you enjoyed today’s videos, will you do me a favor and share it with a friend because you just never know who might need some Beloved encouragement today. 

And for more Beloved, be sure to download the Beloved Women app available in the Apple and Google play stores for unlimited access to beloved Bible studies, daily devotions, inspiring interviews, and videos to fill your soul. I look forward to connecting with you there. 

As always, thank you so much for watching, and until next time, be beautiful, be blessed, and be loved.