Mark 4: 26-29 “He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”

Many of the TGNs derive from my memories of growing up on my dad & mom’s rice farm in Hamburg, Arkansas. My dad was also the son of a rice farmer in Carlisle, Arkansas. Farming during his lifetime changed from mules & horses and huge thrashing machines, to tractors & combines. What did not change was farming is high risk, hard work, and long hours with Life Principles that have not changed since time began.

My dad was an incredible farmer. While he never finished high school, I remember highly educated people in agriculture coming out to the farm seeking his wisdom. His fields & his yields were always better than our neighbors. He had the touch. I remember so many times him walking across the field much like a proud grandfather with his grandchildren in his lap. He loved to farm…It was in his blood.

 Farming is a lonely profession which is the reason I told my dad I could not farm. But now, years later I surprisingly discover I have been using many of the farming principles that he taught me to lead & supervise people. It’s called the Law of the Farm. It all began in Genesis with Adam & Eve on God’s Farm, the Garden of Eden.

One of the unique characteristics of farming is, there is no “sugar coating,” or no calling something that’s not as if it were. For people who have no farm background it’s a harsh & hard life. Maybe this is why people have difficulty in understanding & believing Galatians 6:7, “Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant.” Note God’s use of the word “ALWAYS”! If a person plants weeds, they will harvest weeds. If a person wants corn, they must plant corn.

This is the first week of the new year. This is when dad decided what he would plant in each field. He would bring the equipment into the shop for repairs & maintenance for the upcoming crop because when planting time came it would be a daylight-to-dark-thirty-effort. Prep time was over.

Have you decided what you are going to plant this year? Are you prepared?