The Time Is Right

STORY: Late on Purpose

Timing is everything. I was taught that if I’m not early, I’m late. But I’ve always had someone in my life who is programmed to be late. One of the friends I walked to school with was never ready when I got to her house. So I’d watch and wait as she ate breakfast, curled her bangs, and used her Waterpik.

One of my grown-up friends said she planned to be late because there was too much pressure being early or on time. If she got somewhere early, she was uncomfortable filling that time waiting for others to arrive. She’d have to make small talk. And she wanted to make sure she was the most put together person in the room, so that took longer. I suggested starting earlier. She preferred being late. But I notice she always came in flustered and in a flop sweat! I’m not sure that’s worth being late.

Today we’re going to discuss being on time to plant. I’m not a gardener or a farmer, but I want to learn to plant the things God has me to plant, in his time.

STUDY: A Time to Plant

She goes to inspect a field and buys it; with her earnings she plants a vineyard. (Proverbs 31:16 NLT)

• In this study on the word “plant” we notice what God plants in us and what we plant. What is the significance of The Proverbs 31 woman taking these actions?
• How can you apply her virtues to your life?
• What type of wisdom do you need God to supply to do this? What resources do you need him to supply?

A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest. Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. (Ecclesiastes 3:2, 11 NLT)

• There is a time for different seasons in our lives. When it is “a time to plant,” what do we need to focus on planting?
• I love the quote that “God has made everything beautiful for its own time.” Every season has a reason.
• What has God planted in the human heart?
• What limitations do we have as humans?

Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest. Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both. (Ecclesiastes 11:4, 6 NLT)

• When is the perfect weather to plant?
• How does this advice from Solomon apply to today?
• If we wait on perfect conditions to do something God has nudged us to do now, we are actually delaying the blessing. Who are we to question when the time is right?

I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work. (1 Corinthians 3:6-8 NLT)

• Who planted the seed of the gospel in your heart? Who watered that seed? It’s good to know the individuals who shared the good news with us. But those names don’t matter, in comparison to knowing it was God who made the seed grow.
• Who is the recipient of your planting and watering, when it comes to speaking and living the gospel in their lives?

Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. (2 Corinthians 9:6 NLT)

• Another form of planting is when we give. 2 Corinthians 9:7 talks about how God loves a cheerful giver. We aren’t to give grudgingly or sparingly.
• What is the crop we gain when we give?

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. (Colossians 2:6-7 NLT)

• When we are planted in Christ, the way we grow is to continue to follow him.
• How can you let your roots grow down into him?
• How can you let your life be built on him?
• What happens when you do that?                                                      

STEPS: Garden your Life

1. Plan your planting. What does God want you to plant? When does he want you to plant it? Why is there a sense of urgency not to wait?
2. Plant generously. Plan for some seeds to be lost and not flourish. The more we plant, the bigger the harvest. What do you tend to be stingy with that God is leading you to increase?
3. Let your roots grow deep. When you follow Christ and make him the boss of your priorities, decisions, actions, and attitudes—you grow deep roots.

Copyright © 2020 Kathy Carlton Willis, used with permission.