Healed To Harvest

Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. He brings healing, help and hope inviting you to become a harvest worker.  

“On the third day a man arrived from Saul’s camp with his clothes torn and dust on his head. “What happened?” David asked. “Tell me.” “The men fled from the battle, And Saul and his son Jonathan are dead.” Then David and all the men with him took hold of their clothes and tore them. They mourned and wept and fasted till evening for Saul and his son Jonathan, and for the army…David took up this lament concerning Saul and his son Jonathan…may you have neither dew nor rain, may no showers fall on your terraced fields…in life they were loved and admired, and in death they were not parted…weep for Saul, who clothed you in scarlet…I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother; you were very dear to me. Your love for me wonderful” 2 Samuel 1:2-26

Have you ever experienced profound loss?  Have you ever gotten a call with a terrible diagnosis or heard the voice of someone giving you unspeakable news? How do you respond to the hardest of times or when you hear words that rock your world? 

David took up a lament. He tore his clothes, fasted, and wept. Symbolically he was experiencing the death of the ones he loved. He thought about the good things and what he loved most about the ones he lost. This passage is particularly meaningful for me today. It happens to be the anniversary of the day my brother passed away five years ago. Only my God could line up a passage that says brother you were very dear to me on this day. 

Yet I am not alone in learning how to process grief not in dealing with loss. None of us will make it out of our time on earth alive, nor will our loved ones, so at some point we need help. We need God to show us how we move forward. 

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. When hard pressed, I cried to the Lord; he brought me into a spacious place. The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. The Lord is with me; he is my helper. The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done. I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation. The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad. The Lord is God, and he has made his light shine on us. You are my God, and I will praise you; Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” Psalms 118:1-29

David endured more battles and saw more loss than any of us could imagine. What helped David continue to do what God called him to do and not lose himself in despair? David practiced gratitude. The truth is, you can be full of grief and still hold fast to being grateful for all God has done. Lament can open the doors to receiving more of God's love.

Look at David’s words. Never once does he say that his life was easy nor that he was happy with his loss. Rather, he said God is with me. God is my strength when I am weak. God has become my salvation. Even with this language, he is inviting us to understand that it is a process. God becomes our salvation as we change how we think and where we focus. Salvation does not just happen. We have a part to play in welcoming the healing and letting God become our source of new life. In the middle of the song, David makes a declaration that I will not die, I will live. David was saying that he refused to remain stuck living in the past. David knew God had a greater purpose for his life.  

Have you ever met someone who is stuck in the past? Who can’t get beyond their pain? David sang you have to change your focus from what you have lost to what you have gained from God. He said even today I will rejoice and be glad. How? Not in his own strength but by praising God and proclaiming the good news. David realized all the pain and problems should not keep him from participating in praising God nor from fulfilling his part in God’s purposes. 

“A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, The righteous hate what is false, Righteousness guards the person of integrity, The light of the righteous shines brightly, Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice. Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. Whoever scorns instruction will pay for it, The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, turning a person from the snares of death. Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm…the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them.” Proverbs 13:1-24 

Solomon says life is about learning and growing. He said those who do what is right will listen and learn. There are many competing voices in our world. Wisdom says you do not want to just listen to anyone or anything. The people who are in alignment with God hate what is false and live in truth. Why does that matter? Because there is no healing when we are not honest and truthful. 

Solomon said where there is pride, there is strife. Pride is the source of so much of our pain and the pain we cause. How is pride impacting you today? How is pride either causing conflict or keeping you from allowing God’s healing grace to give you a heart of gratitude? Solomon said walk with the wise and become wise.  God did not make us to do life alone. He made us to travel with others through life’s hills and valleys.  Are the people in your life helping you move forward and draw closer to God? 

“See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins…the fat of his body will waste away. In that day people will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel. They will not look to the altars, the work of their hands…You have forgotten God your Savior; you have not remembered the Rock…Therefore, though you set out the finest plants and plant imported vines, though…on the morning when you plant them, you bring them to bud, yet the harvest will be as nothing…Before the morning, they are gone!” Isaiah 17:1-14

How well do you receive a warning?  Do you get defensive or are you willing to be discipled? What is your natural response if someone tells you that the way you are walking is not leading you to life? This is what happens when Isaiah spoke the truth to the people of Damascus. He warned them that they would have problems if they did not remember God. This is important in light of the passages of today. How often do we remember our pain, but forget the God who heals pain?

What does the text say about why the people went astray?  He says because you have forgotten God and focused on man made things that you will experience destruction. Isaiah said that on the day of destruction there is only one place to look and that is to your Maker and the Holy one for help. Isaiah speaks of a harvest and warns that only the righteous harvest that is planted by the Lord will grow. 

“Jesus…came to his own town. Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” The man got up and went home. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor. For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Matthew 9:1-38

Consider the compassion of Christ. Everywhere he went he saw people and gave healing to their lives. He brought every kind of healing whether physical, mental, emotional, spiritual or relational. Where would you like healing today? Where do you need his help? Jesus said I did not come from for the healthy. I came for the sick. It’s okay to not be okay. Jesus sees what you are going through and knows how to bring healing to your life. 

Jesus knows that you cannot give what you do not have. You cannot give peace if you do not have peace. You cannot give hope if you do not have hope.  You cannot bring healing if you have not been healed.  So He brings peace, hope, and healing through the power of his mercy and love.  He brings it in truth and grace. He heals the paralyzed man then tells him to sin no more. Why? Likely because he had a victim's mentality and his pain went much deeper than his physical problems.  

Jesus wants to become our salvation and help us see the way to new life. He wants to heal our sin and brokenness that we might be sent into the fields to work and harvest. God wants to use your story to help bring his saving grace to someone else. It is often the pain that you have gone through that can become your purpose as you are best prepared to help someone else who is going through what you have already gone through. Who could you help? Are you willing to let go of the past and step into your kingdom purpose? 

You can have grief, but at some point you have to make a decision like David did, and get going. You have to decide to live. You have to let your lament lead you into loving others as you shift your focus from your grief to the God who loves you. Transformation comes when we choose to give thanks for all that God has done and be glad with the life we can live. So whether you are in the valley of the shadow of death and lamenting loss or singing God’s praises from the mountain tops for a hard fought victory, today is a day to praise the Lord for He is good and His love endures far beyond what you will experience on Earth.