Fight For It

Since moving out to the country, I’ve been spending more time sowing seeds and caring for plants, and I’ve noticed I expect dramatic overnight change when in reality, the plants sprout and grow both slowly and methodically when tended day after day. If I leave them to their own devices for too long (which I’ve also done), they wither and wilt, requiring extra time and care to nurse back to health. The fact that the New York spring has been significantly colder than expected for this former Tennessean has presented unique challenges as well, and I’ve been initiated into the club of moving my plants back and forth from the outdoors to my living room on cold nights.

Did I plant my seeds too early? 

Is the season just late in arriving?

Tomato, to-mah-to.

I don’t know enough to tell which is true because this is new territory for me, but the effort required is the same. No matter what started it, if I want a harvest, I have to show up and be gritty and get some dirt under my nails, planting seeds and preparing the soil for growth and eventually, harvest. I have to show up for the plant babies, nurturing them and keeping them warm until they hold their heads high on strong stems in the summer sun and produce the fruit I’ve been waiting for.

And that’s how life is, too.

You have to be gritty and intentional with your effort and time.

You have to show up and work for your promise.

You have to fight for your blessing.

And you don’t always know what you’re doing, because you’ve likely never been here before.

We see a great illustration of this in scripture. In the first chapter of Joshua, after Moses died, the Lord came to Joshua and told him to gather all the people and prepare to cross the Jordan River into a land that He was going to give them. The Lord also promised to be with Joshua, and encouraged him to be brave and strong as he set out to take hold of what God prepared for his people. The blessing that prompted the Israelites to leave Egypt and wander in the desert was finally within reach. God was reminding Joshua of this promised land, and He was assuring Joshua that the Israelites wouldn’t have to do it alone.

It’s worth remembering that Joshua had never taken the promised land before, but he knew the time was right, and he knew God would empower him to do the work. Even after years of waiting and wandering in the desert, Joshua knew if he lived in the present, working toward promise, that he and his people would see the fruit of that labor. 

And they did.

And so can you.

I’m left wondering, what would have happened if Joshua didn’t lead his people to fight for their promise? What if they were unwilling to work for it - would their promise be cancelled? I can’t say for sure, but I don’t think so — I think it would be delayed. Just like plants left untended will wither and wilt, they can be revived with extra care an attention, and the harvest is still possible, though it may be delayed or smaller. 

This is what happens if you are unwilling to do the work in your life, too. Though God wants to give you good gifts, if you fail to fight for your promise, it will begin to wither and dry up, and if you wait too long, you may have to wait for a few seasons to change before you find the next opportunity to fight for that promise. I like think that in God’s faithfulness, he gives us many chances to fight for it, just like he gave to the Israelites.

God’s given you a promise.

Don’t fear or neglect it, sitting idly by while the season passes.

Get out there and work for it. Fight for it, even.

Dig your heels in and don’t give up.

You were made for this.