There is a passage from the Old Testament that God has been reminding me of several times over the last few weeks.
There was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines, in Gerar.
2 Then the Lord appeared to him and said: “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land of which I shall tell you. 3 Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands, and I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham your father.
Then Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold, and the Lord blessed him. Genesis 26:12 NLT
In a time of famine, the temptation is to give up and go elsewhere, and I am sure Isaac was considering that. But God told Isaac not to do that; He told him to live in the land He had given him, for this was the land God had given to his descendants, and God would bless him in this land.
In a time of famine, it takes faith to continue to sow. Our natural reaction to famine is to draw back, to go into survival mode. But God’s kingdom doesn’t work the way the rest of the world does.
I don’t know how many of you have watched the movie Faith for Potatoes (2006). It is a true story of a farmer in South Africa, who God impressed to plant potatoes in the middle of a drought. Miraculously, the potatoes grew in the dust without rain. And he had an abundant harvest even in the middle of a drought.
The word I hear from God is to continue to sow, continue to reach out, continue to talk to people, continue to share the message of The Shepherd’s Guide, the message of Christians supporting Christians.
In a time of famine, this message is even more critical. The reaction of the rest of the world is to hoard, to not give out, but to keep all that we can in case there won’t be anymore.
But this is the time to support each other, to find ways to encourage the people we connect with as we make our calls and meet people. Hope is a commodity in scarce supply these days, and we have a message of hope to share with people. Our hope is anchored in our relationship with our Heavenly Father and His care for us.
“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
34 “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. Matthew 6:31-34 NLT
This message of hope is needed to counteract the fear that is so pervasive all around us. For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity but of power, love, and self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7 NLT
“My righteous ones will live from my faith. But if fear holds them back, my soul is not content with them!”
39 But we are certainly not those who are held back by fear and perish; we are among those who have faith and experience true life! Hebrews 10:38,39 TPT
It is critical that we don’t give in to the fear that is all around us, that we don’t allow fear to hold us back, but that we stay strong in faith and experience God’s provision during this time. The way we keep our faith strong is by continuing to focus on God’s Word, upon what He says, not what the world around us says.
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
5 In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises.
2 Peter 1:3-5 NLT
Hebrews 6:12 tells us it is through faith and patience that we inherit God’s promises.
The other main strategy of the Enemy during this season is isolation. Churches can no longer meet, there is fear of physical contact with social distancing further enhancing the isolation that is already inherent in our culture. I encourage you to reach out in ways that you can – call those God brings to mind, let them know they are thought of and prayed for. Reach out by email and text. Use technologies like facetime and Video Chat on Facebook that enables you to communicate visually with those you care about. Find innovative ways to connect during this season.
I am reminded of a declaration that Mordecai made to Esther, as she was facing the planned annihilation of her people, who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14
I believe this is the time for The Shepherd’s Guide to shine. I believe that seasons like this are precisely why God birthed The Shepherd’s Guide. I have had the conviction for years that there will come a time when God uses The Shepherd’s Guide to connect believers, much like the underground church has operated in places where the church has been persecuted. So, don’t lose heart, don’t draw back, reach out, sow in this time of famine and see God’s blessing
