"Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever
a man sows, that he will also reap." Galatians 6:7 NKJV
a man sows, that he will also reap." Galatians 6:7 NKJV
When I was an eight-year-old kid, I used to wait after school at a day care center for my Mom to come and pick up my younger brother, sister and I. We romped on the playground, chased each other and generally did what every other kid used to do back then; we had fun outside.
On my ninth birthday, a kid dared me to jump from the monkey bars to an adjacent limb from an oak tree. Even at that tender age, I just knew that I was ten feet tall and bullet proof and that I could make it. NOT! A trip to the emergency room later confirmed that I had broken my Ulna and Radius just above the growth plate near my wrist. It was a hard way to learn a lesson, and I haven’t jumped from a set of monkey bars in over 35 years. Thank you very much!
I’m not real bright. And as far as I can recollect, I’ve never claimed to be. However, I do have one thing going for me which proves that I have at least two working brain cells to rub together: my wife, Kennon Marie. She is about as smart as they come, and the fact that she loves me as much as she does simply boggles my mind. Why? Because I know me all too well and what bounces around inside my noggin! How she tolerates me is beyond my comprehension, but I’m certainly grateful that she does.
There is one lesson that, regrettably, has taken me quite a while to learn. (Remember the “not too bright” thing? Forget the monkey bars, will you? Here’s a better example!) I have found that the better I treat my wife, the more affection I show her, the more kindness, love, respect and gratitude I shower upon her the more I get back in return. As one intelligent individual put it, “the more deposits I make into her emotional bank account, the more withdrawals in like manner I can take out.”
Right now, some of you are saying, “No kidding! You really are brain dead!” That’s alright, I’ve learned from my previous errors…for the most part. But what, if anything, does this have to do with health, fitness and fat loss? Plenty.
Stay tuned and I’ll tell you why.
Certain things that occur here in God’s creation for us are backed by principles that are immutable, undeniable and utterly absolute. One such “law” of God is that of sowing and reaping. It’s very basic and easy to understand, but many people try in vain to deny its existence.
Think of a habit in which you currently participate. It could be anything; watching a certain show on television, smoking, talking on your mobile phone while you drive or working out at 5:30 am each day. Whatever. The point is, for each and every habit in which you participate (sowing), you produce consequences (reaping). The results of these habits are consequences that are either beneficial to you in some way or not. They may have short term consequences, or long term consequences but they produce a definite result nonetheless.
The real question in all of this is: “What are you currently reaping from your sowing?”
Habits are a package deal: practice a habit, produce a result. There’s just no way around it. You can’t have one without the other. You can’t practice a negative habit and produce a positive result. Sorry! It’s immutable; remember?
The good news here is this: if you want to reap more positive results than your current sowing habits are producing, you have the free will to change your habits! That’s right, you have every opportunity to change the direction of your life RIGHT NOW if you so desire.
You can stop eating junk food and sugary, processed sweets and start eating fresh fruits and vegetables. You can stop drinking all of that nasty soda and start drinking clean, pure water. You can stop sitting on your backside and get up and get healthy, fit, lean and in shape! How? By sowing to better habits.
The first order of business is to come to the place of understanding just why it is you currently do what you do. Realize that on some level, whatever habits you have formed are, at this time, giving you some measure of enjoyment and/or pleasure. If they weren’t you wouldn’t be doing them. It’s OK; just own it so you can change it.
The next step is to make a decision to change. Nothing happens without decisions.
My 1968 Funk & Wagnall Dictionary defines a decision as: n. 1. The act of deciding (an issue, question, etc). 2. A conclusion or judgment reached by deciding. 3. The making up of one’s mind 4. Firmness in judgment, action, or character. 5. In boxing, a victory (great word, by the way) decided when there has not been a knockout.
Edwin Louis Cole, in his great book “Treasure” says it this way: “The level on which you live is under your power of choice. You have the freedom to choose, but once the choice is made (decision), you become the servant of that choice.”
Please read that again.
The next time you have the choice to eat something (sowing) that is beneficial to your goals and body or not (reaping), to which are you willing to become a servant? The next time you have an opportunity to exercise and train, or sit and watch T.V., to which choice will you be a servant?
The next time you have the choice to eat something (sowing) that is beneficial to your goals and body or not (reaping), to which are you willing to become a servant? The next time you have an opportunity to exercise and train, or sit and watch T.V., to which choice will you be a servant?
You see, the corollary to this freedom of choice is this; decision translates into energy. Indecision saps energy. If you don’t like the life you’re currently living, change your choices. It’s that simple. Refusing to exercise your power and freedom to choose allows others to exercise it for you. Allowing others to make choices and decisions for you allows them to create your world, and others will ALWAYS make it too small.
In other words, making an empowering decision means that there is no turning back, no way out, no backtracking or sidestepping. It takes a certain degree of responsibility to make a decision, and a definite degree of character and responsibility to stick with one. Someone much wiser than I once said, “A man (or a woman) can be measured by the amount of responsibility he undertakes.” When you take a decisive stance on becoming healthier, then you have ended all uncertainty, all dispute, and you are conclusive with this resolve: "I will be victorious in this issue no matter what it takes or how long it takes me. From now on, The Buck Stops Here!"
In other words, making an empowering decision means that there is no turning back, no way out, no backtracking or sidestepping. It takes a certain degree of responsibility to make a decision, and a definite degree of character and responsibility to stick with one. Someone much wiser than I once said, “A man (or a woman) can be measured by the amount of responsibility he undertakes.” When you take a decisive stance on becoming healthier, then you have ended all uncertainty, all dispute, and you are conclusive with this resolve: "I will be victorious in this issue no matter what it takes or how long it takes me. From now on, The Buck Stops Here!"
Without making a decision to change habits for the better, you cannot take action. And action is where the real success of the story is fulfilled. No action (sowing), no results (reaping). Much action, much results. There’s that immutable thing again.
When a farmer wants to reap a crop of corn, he must sow his field with corn seeds. His actions in the sowing of the seed will, in due time, produce a field of corn. Likewise, when you sow to a new habit, you will, in due time, reap the benefits of your actions. Ponder this quote Rita Mae Brown: "A life of reaction is a life of slavery; intellectually and spiritually. One must fight for a life of action, not reaction." Smart lady.
The Bible states it this way, “Where no oxen are, the trough is clean; But much increase (productivity and change=reaping) comes by the strength (sowing and actions) of an ox.” (Proverbs 14:4) Your actions sown into a new habit will bring about and reap change for the better. Revel in it.
Like a farmer, the more new habits you sow into, the more new habit “crops” you reap. However, what if the farmer found out mid-way in the sowing process that corn wasn’t the “cash crop” he’d hoped it would be. Perhaps he has 200 acres of land on which to sow, and he’s planted 50 acres with corn. Since he wants a more profitable yield, he is now going to plant something more prosperous. Let’s say it’s wheat. He plants the remaining 150 acres with wheat. But what about the corn?
Let’s say that you have a habit of eating donuts every morning for breakfast. Those little white powdered beasts that look like tiny snow covered tires. Let’s also say that you’ve been doing it for five years now. This five year habit is like your 50 acres of corn. You decide to sow to a new habit, perhaps eating oatmeal and egg whites. You begin to sow to this new, more prosperous habit. Can you expect your previous crop (five years of donut eating) not to still yield some kind of harvest ever again. Probably not.
This is the area of concern for most people that is often never addressed properly. Anytime you sow to a new habit, you can expect the “old crop” to show up occasionally, waiting to be reaped. How do you deal with it? I refer back to Edwin Cole: “You have the freedom to choose, but once the choice is made you become the servant of that choice.”
You have two choices: harvest the crop or cut it down and let it die in the field to make room for the more prosperous crop.
When the old habit raises its head, will you always prevail? Probably not. But that’s OK. You are on the road to sowing a new habit. Focus on it and reap the rewards of it. Leave the old crop where you must, it isn’t serving you any further.
I hope you’ve gained a better understanding of the Law of Sowing and Reaping and can apply the lessons from it to the improvement and betterment your life. That way, you will have the satisfaction that what ever you sow, you will also reap.
God bless you,
Steve
