Last week, I was taking my daily walk and saw string beans scattered every few feet on the dirt road near my home. Most of them were crushed from being run over by vehicles, and I wondered where they had come from. Two days later I was walking with my husband and a huge truck overflowing with string beans sped past me. Beans were bouncing out of the truck onto the road. Mystery solved. At first, I thought, “Wow this guy is losing a lot of his harvest. All that work going to waste.” I wished I was able to tell him, and yet, there was no way he wasn’t aware since there was another vehicle following closely behind. As I looked down at the fresh beans on the ground, I felt compelled to gather them up. It wasn’t long before my husband joined in. It was late afternoon and we were sweating and our muscles were starting to ache as we bent down again and again for over a mile in the blazing sun gathering beans, but even so, each time we found another bean we rejoiced. When we came home, I looked at the pile of beans in my lap, marveling over our beautiful little harvest and I knew immediately this experience held prophetic meaning. In fact, I shared it on Facebook and asked my prophetic friends to share what they received- you can check it out here. It was such a beautiful thing to see the gifts of the body in action as so many people shared. All of them were powerful and encouraging words (even the funny ones because God wants us to have joy on the journey!) God is certainly speaking to His people, and louder than ever in this season. I received many things initially after my experience with the beans but after much prayer, this is what I felt the Lord wanted me to share.
God is looking for people that will answer the call to bring in the harvest of souls ready to be gathered. Who will be the faithful ones? Who will put their hands to the plow and not look back? “It’s My faithful ones,” says the Lord, “who will receive the provision for the mission. Those that are faithful with little will receive much and will see my Glory as they use what I place in their hands for the end-time harvest.”
The Holy Spirit led me to Matthew 9:35-38
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. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
God is all about souls. In the verses above, we see the heart of the Father through Jesus, as He looks upon the lost and hurting people with great compassion. Through the ages, even as man has been unfaithful, God has remained forever faithful. His great love for mankind was revealed through the sacrifice of Jesus so that once again man could be restored to Him. This is God’s heart.
You and I, as disciples of Christ, are those laborers commissioned to go into the harvest field (the world) and gather in the Harvest (souls). We’re called to go on a search and rescue mission to seek and save the lost. There were many beans on the road that day that had been crushed. Every day lives are being “crushed” by the enemy and it’s you and I who are called to deliver salvation to them. Don’t ever feel like you can’t make a difference. You can. Even if you were to touch just one person’s life. Jesus left the 99 for 1. At some point in time, you were that “one” soul God loved enough to save from destruction. You are THAT valuable to God and so is each one of His children. May the love of God compel us to fervently go after souls.
Next, the Lord then brought me to the parable of the talents. I know many of us are familiar with this parable, but read it through with spiritual ears to hear what the Lord wants to reveal to YOU personally, right now.
The Parable of the Talents – Matthew 25:14-30 (ESV)
14 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants[a] and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents,[b] to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away.16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.[c] You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming, I should have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Being faithful involves good stewardship. To steward something means “the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care.” Everything you have has been given to you by God and He’s trusting you to care for it. We’ve already determined the “something” most valuable to God is souls, and so it’s important to realize that everything God places in our hands is not just for us, but for the benefit of His Kingdom and reaching more souls. That means all of the provision, influence, and blessing God gives us is for His glory – not ours. It’s to advance His Kingdom – not ours. Many get the blessings and say “Thanks Lord!” and go their merry way. Of course, God wants us to enjoy what He blesses us with, but make no mistake, God is a wise investor. He’s a God of increase. He’s looking for us to invest what He gives so that it can be multiplied and His will on earth could be accomplished.
God will give you PROVISION for the mission. When you’re faithful with little, God will bless you with much. He will increase your influence, He will open doors for you to walk through, He will set you up for Divine appointments, and He will provide whatever is needed for you to be a testimony for Him and do His work. There is no lack in the Kingdom. Don’t worry about how, God will get it to you – He’s a supernatural God and not limited in any way. He’s the God who rained down manna from Heaven, the God who multiplied the loaves and fishes, the God who provided the only perfect sacrifice needed for a lost people to be restored to Him. He’s the wise Master in the parable, placing coins in the hands of faithful servants who will bring back a return on His investment.
The beans I gathered that day, were symbolic I believe, and placed in my hand because the farmer wasn’t faithful with the bounty he was given. (For whatever reason… maybe he didn’t care, maybe someone who worked for him didn’t care, maybe the loss was so little it didn’t matter to him…maybe there’s another reason we may never know about … it’s not for us to judge, just to glean from. But the parable of the talent is very clear that those who are unfaithful will lose what they have and it will be given to the faithful. This is a warning and encouragement to us all.
I like what someone shared on my Facebook post – “Right place, right time.” Hallelujah! God will place faithful people in the right place at the right time because He knows that the faithful person will use the opportunity, the influence, and the provision they are given all for God’s glory. I was speaking to a member of my church family and she was sharing a story of the opportunity she had to witness to someone famous. Since I’ve known her, she’s had many opportunities where God placed people of influence in her path. I said to her, “You get these opportunities because God knows you’re faithful. He knows He can trust you to always share the gospel with them.” I’m sure there were times it wasn’t comfortable or convenient or even received well, and that it took time and effort to do so, but she chose to be faithful and God always blesses her faithfulness. What a testimony and example for us to follow!
I believe faithfulness is everything in this season. God is not looking for the most talented, the best looking, the most charismatic, or the most well-off – He’s looking for the faithful ones. Those who will put their hand to the plow and not look back up. Those who will say:
Here I am Lord, send me! Use me as a vessel for Your glory Lord! All I am and all I have is yours!
Will we be faithful even when we’re criticized, when we don’t get the pat on the back, or when the fruit of our labor is nowhere in sight…yet? Will we be faithful when all we can do is keep on plowing and believing God’s Word never returns void when it promises we WILL reap what we sow if we don’t give up (Gal. 6:9)? Or what about when the abundant blessings come, and people do pat you on the back, and life gets comfier, will you still be faithful? Will you keep the blessings or the glory for yourself? Will you choose comfort over conviction? Or will you continue to be faithful to the call of God on your life, giving Him all the glory?
I came home and washed those beans and planned on eating them for dinner that night but couldn’t go through with it for some reason. I didn’t know why, I just felt the Lord telling me to hold off. It wasn’t until this morning as I wrote this blog, the Lord said, this blessing is not just for you, but to sow into others. I want you to sow them into other faithful people as a prophetic act. 
And so I took those beans and bagged them up for four people I know are good soil, who are good stewards, and who will be faithful with what God places in their hands for His Kingdom and His Glory! And so friends, we come full circle – God is all about souls. The Harvest is ripe and He’s calling you and me to be those faithful laborers. Be faithful right where you’re at with what you have and watch what God does! #endtimeharvest #watchoutworld #supernaturalprovison #rightplacerighttime #handstotheplow #allforHisglory
