A Life Of Continuous Harvest

I bless the name of the Lord for the grace to once again share a little of His word. Most of my post in recent times have been centered around marriage and the home and that will continue as the Holy Spirit opens up our hearts to the need to build a healthy home requisite for a peaceful society. But today I wish to deviate a little from marriage and trust the Lord to open up our hearts to His word. I want to share a little word with the women.

2 Kings 4:8-13a
One day Elisha went to Shunem. And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat. She said to her husband, "I know that this man who often comes our way is a holy man of God. Let's make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and table, a chair and a lamp for him. Then he can stay there whenever he comes to us."
One day when Elisha came, he went up to his room and lay down there. He said to his servant Gehazi, "Call the Shunamite." So he called her, and she stood before him. Elisha said to him, "Tell her, 'You have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you?

 By the grace of God I want to use today's post to encourage the women. Women who have foresight and are vessels in the hands of God. Women who have used their hard earned resources to bless the lives of many within and outside their household. Women like the Shunamite that is spoken of in the the passage above.
One thing that appeals to me in the character of this Shunamite is that Elisha never approached her for help. He never begged for her assistance in anyway. But this women discerned and made up her mind within her to sow seeds in the life of the man of God.
Another thing that I noticed in her story is that she did what she did with the permission and consent of her husband even though she was well-to-do. So she didn't overlook or undermine the authority of her husband in the bid to help or meet the need in the life of the man of God. So in being a vessel in God's hands to meet the needs of Elisha there was a balance.
But more importantly is a woman who understood the importance of sowing a seed. One thing I pray the Lord will help us learn is the need to sow seeds. Not necessarily giving gifts to your pastor, but helping to meet the needs of people whom the Lord has directed to you. It is important to be able to discern someone truly needing help and whom the Lord wants you to help and a parasite feeding on your God given resources. The Shunamite woman said she knew that the man is a holy man of God. He was not just anybody. And whatever help or assistance rendered is a seed to be harvested in the future.
The Shunamite woman didn't choose to urge Elisha to eat a meal just once, she feed the man every time he went to Shunem. And she didn't just feed Elisha, she made a room for him in her roof to stay any time he visited. So she had been sowing her seed over time. But she sowed this seed to the point where Elisha had to think. The kind gesture of the Shunamite woman cried out for a harvest and so Elisha didn't feel it befitting to enjoy the continuous benefit without giving something in return. The Lord who is God over the harvest will not give Elisha peace of mind until he blessed the woman who had been good to him and so Elisha got thinking.  He called the woman and told her, "You have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you?"
This is a lesson I want to keep dear to my heart and I pray many women will do the same. This is the time to sow into the Kingdom of God. Not just a one-time seed, but a continuous sowing that will call God to remembrance that a harvest is required and due. When we speak of harvest, we need to be reminded that there is an action that precedes harvest and that is sowing and watering. Proverbs 31:20 speaks of the wife of noble character as one who opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.
The Shunamite woman made it an habit to sow into the life of the man of God Elisha and she in turn received a continuous harvest. First her barrenness was removed as she gave birth to a son after Elisha spoke into her life (2 Kings 4:13-17), then she had her son restored to life from death by the prayers of the man of God (2 Kings 4:18-36). She and her family were later saved from the impending famine that the Lord decreed over the land for seven years. And on her return from exile, she received divine favour from the king and had all her land and income from when she left the country till she returned returned to her (2 Kings 8:1-6). The Shunamite woman did not sow a one-time seed and so she didn't get a one-time harvest.
As a woman, do you have an attitude of giving? This is part of the characteristics of a wife of noble character, she is one who opens her arm to the poor and helps the needy. By so doing you are sowing seeds for a future harvest. Please do not make your seed a one-time seed so as to enjoy a future of continuous harvest.