I find this Scripture to be one of the most encouraging verses in the Bible. God has given it to me many times when I have been tempted to quit and give up before I reap the benefits of my efforts in any given area.

For many years, I had a deep desire to be free from the burdensome debt that weighed upon my husband, Joe, and me for decades. All that time, I had no steady income, but what little money I had, I sowed into ministries that blessed me, and into charities that upheld God's righteous causes. When things looked bleak, I would recall Ecclesiastes 11:6 (TLB): "KEEP ON SOWING YOUR SEED, for you never know which will grow - perhaps it ALL will." Right before my husband retired, after being in the workforce for more than 50 years, the Lord worked a miracle and enabled us to pay off ALL of our debts, including our mortgage. I know in my heart that if I hadn't kept sowing my seed all those years, we would still be under a mountain of debt.

There are different kinds of "seeds" that the Lord expects us to sow. Prayers can be seeds. Perhaps you have been praying for a loved one's salvation for many years, but you still don't see any evidence that your prayers are making a difference. Keep sowing your seed! Satan wants you to think that your loved one is never going to love and serve God, but remember that the devil is a liar. Maybe you have been praying for healing for yourself or others, even standing on God's promises, but you haven't seen any real results for your efforts. Keep sowing your seed! Your manifestation is on the way. Just don't quit and give up before it arrives.

Our labor can be seeds. Perhaps you have done your best to be an excellent employee, but you have gained little or no recognition or reward for your efforts. Keep sowing your seed! Even if your employer never rewards you, God will - and His rewards are better than anyone's. Maybe you are a caregiver of some sort, but you don't feel the least bit appreciated. Keep sowing your seed! The Lord sees everything you do, and He will not let your efforts go unrewarded. Are you in ministry in some way? Are you feeling overlooked and unappreciated? Keep sowing your seed! You have no idea how many lives you are changing, or how many people are going to come up to you in Heaven and say, "I'm here because of you!"

Let me leave you with a promise-plea from the Lord today - "Don't allow yourselves to be weary in planting good seeds, for the season of reaping the wonderful harvest you've planted is coming!" (Galatians 6:9 TPT)

Prayer: Lord, teach me how to sow seeds Your way in every area of my life. When I am tempted to quit and give up before I reap my rewards, please strengthen and encourage me. Thank You for the "wonderful harvests" that are headed my way as I keep sowing my seeds!