White for Harvest
Why, it’s elementary, my dear Christian
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Don’t you say, ‘There are four more months and then comes the harvest?’ I tell you, look up and see that the fields are already white for harvest!
John 4:35 (NET)
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“Success leaves clues.”
I can’t remember who I first heard this from, but somewhere along the line in my business ventures I came across that quote. It’s a simple idea that if I want to learn to find the path to success, pay extra attention to successful people.
I thought of that quote because I see something similar in this verse here:
Harvest-time leaves clues.
Not the most elegant transition, but it stuck out to me.
What I see Jesus saying here is that there are obvious signs you can see whenever the harvest is ready. He commented on the signs that the agricultural people would know that there was yet four more months and then the harvest would be ready.
But the disciples were missing the spiritual reality right in front of them.
The spiritual harvest-time was right now!
How often do we miss these obvious clues?
Many times — in a way probably similar to the disciples — we’re just not thinking about it. Focused on the physical needs of the day. After all, they were coming back after shopping for some lunch.
They were a little bit tunnel-visioned and missed the clues.
Like a good sports coach, Jesus steps in and gives them a reality check. The harvest was here.
They needed to “make hay while the sun was shining,” because the harvest doesn’t stay ripe forever. When it’s ready … it’s ready. You gotta reap it right then.
Sometimes urgency is demanded, and I better pay attention to the spiritual reality around me.
— Ricky Ketchum
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