Often times when we invest ourselves into something and do not see the fruit of our labor, we become disappointed. Why did we work so hard? Why did we care so much? We spent so much time and energy and so many sleepless night to be left empty handed…

This situation can be very depressing until you perceive it in the view of sowing and reaping. In the first century, one man would plant the seeds and a different man would later reap… this is a well known turn of phrase ”one man sows and another reaps”

But what does that really mean? How the heck does that apply to putting in hard work and feeling overlooked?

 The joy was in the reaping, not always in the sowing. The sowers worked hard to prepare the ground and plant the seed, but often did not get to participate in the harvest. Consequently, they missed the celebrations that occurred during that special season of the year. Most people of this period saw this as an inequity that couldn’t be helped. It’s a little like working hard most of your life to amass enough money so you can enjoy the rest of your life in ease only to die unexpectedly and leave it for someone else to enjoy. Sometimes life just doesn’t seem fair! 

 When you become preoccupied with the temporal/material you lose sight of the eternal and fail to realize the potential of reaching others and pursuing excellence