Work in the Present Pray into the Future

 

     Hello everybody, my name is Dean Davis, and this is “Multiply,” the podcast that provides a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.  

Farmers and church planters have a lot in common. Both farmers and church planters work by faith. Neither one knows for sure that the work they are doing today will result in a harvest in the coming months. But both work hard today so that there might be a great harvest in the near future. Farmers till the ground day after day getting ready to plant the seed. They carefully plant the seed so that it has the best opportunity to grow and produce a crop. They cultivate the growing field to control weeds and when harvest comes they work diligently to gather all of the grain. 

In the same way, church planters work hard today in hopes of a great harvest in the coming months. Church planters prepare the ground by praying for persons of peace. Church planters carefully and wisely sow the good seed of the Gospel in such a way that it will bear fruit. When the Gospel seed is received, they cultivate the hearts of new believers, teaching them to obey Christ. They help their people kill the weeds of doubt and disobedience that try to choke the faith of the church members before it can bear fruit. 

Farmers dream of having great crops that produce plenty of food. They hope that everything will go well. They want the rains to come at the right time and in the right amounts. They want a big crop; they want to rejoice with their family when the crop comes in. 

Likewise, church planters dream of having healthy growing churches in which more and more people come to know Jesus and learn to live as his faithful followers. As we dream, we pray. We pray for the future harvest, humbly asking God to bless, provide, and protect the work. 

But some church planters spend so much time dreaming about the future and planning and praying for future blessing that they neglect the work that needs to be done today. And there are some church planters who are so busy with today’s work they forget to plan and pray for the work that needs to be done in a few weeks or a few months. We must balance these two tendencies, but how? 

How can new church planters find the right balance between working hard on what needs to be done today and planning and praying for the future? The Four Fields Model can help. Church planters who follow the Four Fields Model know exactly what needs to be done today. They can identify the field they are working in and do the work that field requires. Today. But at the same time, they can see the tasks that will need to be done for the next field. So, they can pray for God to work and move and bless them so that as effective church planters, they will be ready to do those tasks when the time comes. 

The Four Fields Model is our guide. It helps us focus our work today and plan and pray for the future. So, follow the Four Fields Model as you work and pray. It will lead you to a more fruitful church planting future.  

This has been “Multiply,” and I’m Dean Davis asking, “Who will you share this encouraging word with today? 

#EncouragementForVillageChurchPlanters #FourFields Model