Dec 21

Abundant Harvest

"Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox comes an abundant harvest." Proverbs 14:4

Have you ever complained about the mess that you find yourself in? I think we all have, but often we fail to see the larger picture in our lives. Solomon is here telling a story of a farmer who may have been complaining about the mess in his barn. Perhaps the oxen were more work than he expected! Boy, if only he could get rid of those oxen his life would be perfect. No more endless cleaning manure, no more filling the manger with hay everyday. What the farmer is not seeing if that without the oxen he wouldn't have a harvest either. He's missing the big picture. The oxen may be a lot of work to take care of, they may require a lot of work to clean up after, but without them there would no great blessings either. Isn't it this way in our lives as well? We often forget to look at the big picture and only focus on our present trouble. Do you find yourself complaining about how untidy your life is? Are you looking at the negative instead of the positive? What you focus on will help to determine your attitude about your experiences. Are you focusing on the extra load the boss has dumped on you without compensation? Or are you focusing on how blessed you are to have a job at all and a boss that believes in you? Are you focusing on the loads of laundry to be done, the dishes in the sink, the house to be cleaned and becoming overwhelmed by all you must face today? Or are you focusing on how blessed you are to have a family to love and take care of? Are you focusing on the leak in your roof or on the fact that you have a roof over your head that can be fixed? You see it's all about focus. Are you going to focus on your burdens or your blessings? Or in the words of Ron Hutchcraft, "are you going to focus on the mess from the wrapping paper or the gift from God that He wrapped?"

Father, help us to look past the wrapping paper and focus on your gifts to us in this life. You have blessed us beyond measure and yet we insist on looking at life through a microscope! Teach us to see things as you do, open our eyes and our hearts to all that you have to teach us. Thank you for the oxen, Lord and especially for the harvest they bring! Amen