Diversify Freely

Ecc 11:4 "He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap."

 

So yesterday it seemed like Solomon was saying: Be prepared, diversify, get ready. Two verses later it seems like he is saying: "Throw caution to the wind.". What's the deal?

 

Most of the people who lived in the time of Solomon lived off the land. It was an agrarian society where people had to plant what they were going to eat. There was no convenient Giant Eagle or Super Wal-Mart around the corner. Because of this, people would plant in the spring and reap in the fall. Sometimes this got tricky because what they planted may not always produce a crop.

 

I experienced this last summer. I have a small garden behind my house and the year before was amazing. The tomatoes, the peppers, the lettuce, the basil…we had a bumper crop. Not last year. The weather was very wet and I did not get what I wanted at the end of the year. Did I reap a little? Sure. But it was not what I expected or wanted. Now what would have happened if I had known ahead of time that it was going to be wet year? What would I have done? Not planted at all…or planted more?

I should have been more liberal in my planting. That way, even though each plant may not have produced what I wanted, I would have received more than the year before…even in a bad year.

 

That is what I believe, Solomon is trying to get across. Don't worry about the wind. Don't worry about the rain. Don't worry about the clouds. Don't worry about the future. Don't worry about potential disaster. Sow…and sow liberally. Don't just hoard what you have now. Let giving be part of the diversification plan. Jesus said it: "Give and it will be given unto you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you." Luke 6:38 This is the law of sowing and reaping. If we are always consumed with the wind and clouds and we hang on to our seed, we will never reap a harvest. Instead if we sow liberally, we will reap liberally. 2 Cor 9:6

 

It is all part of diversifying freely…it is all part of planning for the future.