Begin with two minutes of stillness and silence before God.

Some things in life take time—like baking bread, building muscle, or waiting for your favorite football team to get a winning record (I’ve still got hope, Southern Miss!). But we live in a world of instant results: instant coffee, instant messaging, instant everything. As much as we may wish, the Kingdom of God isn’t Amazon. God doesn’t operate on two-day shipping.

If we are going to continue growing in generosity, we need to understand that love takes time. Paul wraps up Galatians by talking about a principle every believer has needed in his or her life: farming. “A man reaps what he sows.”

And let’s be honest, sowing and reaping aren’t exactly instant.

In Galatians 6:6-18, Paul is calling us to think long-term about generosity. He challenges us with a powerful truth: when we invest in the things of God, when we “sow to please the Spirit,” we’re planting seeds that will bear fruit—though sometimes that fruit takes a while to grow. This is true in every part of our lives: financially giving to the mission of the Church, building relationships with other people, seeing campuses take root in new communities, raising up the next generation of leaders at the Movement, etc.

If we’re going to be radically generous people, we need to get comfortable with the idea of planting seeds and trusting that God will bring growth in His time. Generosity is a commitment to keep planting, to keep pouring out, even when we can’t see the results right away. Paul says, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

That’s a challenge to me personally. Maybe it is for you, as well. It can be so tempting to just throw our hands up and say, “What’s the point?” when we don’t see an immediate change, growth, or return. But in God’s economy, nothing given is ever wasted.

Maybe you’ve been faithfully serving, giving, and encouraging others, but you feel like you’re not seeing any return on investment. You’re not alone. Paul knew this feeling well. But he also knew that God’s timeline is different from ours. He reminds us to stay the course and to keep planting with faith, because there’s a harvest coming. Our job is to keep going, even when the soil feels hard or the seeds seem small. But make no mistake, every act of generosity is a seed that God sees, a seed that He will bring to life in due time.

So friends, let’s commit to the long game of generosity. Let’s embrace the process of sowing and trust God with the harvest. And remember, God doesn’t miss a single seed. He sees every act of kindness, every sacrifice, and every step of faith, and He promises that in time, there will be a harvest.

Take two minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

• Are there areas in my life where I’ve been sowing seeds of generosity but feel discouraged because I haven’t seen the results yet? How can I renew my commitment to keep planting with faith?
  
• What does “sowing to the Spirit” look like in my daily life? How can I invest in things that matter for eternity?
  
• Who might need encouragement or support to keep going on their own journey of generosity? How can I come alongside them to remind them of the harvest that’s coming?
  
• Prayer: Lord, thank You for the promise that we will reap a harvest if we don’t give up. Help me to trust in Your timing, even when I can’t see the results of my efforts. Renew my strength to keep sowing seeds of generosity and faith, and give me the patience to wait on Your perfect plan. May my life be a part of the beautiful work You are doing here at Venture and in the world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.