“Isaiah replied, “But my work seems so useless! I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose. Yet I leave it all in the LORD’s hand, I will trust God for my reward.” Isaiah 49:4 (NLT)
Discouragement: such a bane in our spiritual walk. Our efforts in furthering the Kingdom of God can feel so inadequate. Like Isaiah, we tire of the daily struggle. The lack of results brings us to our knees before God, as our hearts cry out, “My work seems so useless!”
Sowing is tedious work: We till the soil, prepare it for the harvest and work long hours without any visible results. Yet, the key to sowing is to remember that deep in the ground, the seed is undergoing a transformation. Its coat is being softened in preparation for germination.
I think we often forget this truth when growth doesn’t occur, circumstances don’t change, and we don’t see answers to our prayers. We grow despondent, and that’s precisely where the devil wants us. He whispers, “Your efforts are useless. You’re wasting your time. Nothing’s happening, so why don’t you just give up?”
Yet, in the midst of his discouragement, Isaiah surrenders all of his hard work, efforts, and aspirations to God, remembering that, ultimately, the outcome depends not on his competence or incompetence but on God’s sovereign will. God equips us, He uses us, but ultimately, He determines the outcome.
Hold fast to this truth: God never wastes our honest efforts. He can turn even our most feeble acts of faith into something useful for His Kingdom. So keep sowing.
Prayer: Sowing can be such discouraging work, Lord. Yet though I may not see the harvest, help me to remain faithful in the work to which you have called me. So today, I serve you willingly, obediently, serving this generation by sharing your word. Amen.
Thought: “The longer I live, the more I am enabled to realize that I have but one life to live on earth, and that this one life is but a brief life, for sowing, in comparison with eternity, for reaping.” George Mueller