There is a question I think God posed to me recently that I can't shake.

"What does the

Harvest look like to the Wheat field?"
The answer is "death". The Harvest looks like death to the wheat field. ut why did I !et
that question is my question?
I reali"ed that from our "#hristian$saved" perspective we look at the Harvest% whether
literally as wheat or as a Harvest of "souls" % from kind of a !li& position. We think %
"Well that's a !ood thin!. 'ouls are &rou!ht into the kin!dom( etc." However( to those
who are on the receivin! end of the sickle( it's the end of life as they know it. )s a shaft
of wheat( without the destination in mind and the hope that God is redefinin! events
*turnin! you into food$nourishment+( the thou!ht leads to despair( not the ,oy and promise
of new life unless the full !ospel is revealed. I heard someone once say that in faith(
repentance must &e paired with re,oicin!. -epentance without re,oicin! leads us into
despair. -e,oicin! without repentance is an empty encounter. .ur hearts must en!a!e
with The Holy 'pirit to fill that place that has chosen a new direction with His ,oy and
His life / leadin! to our ,oy and our new life or else the le!itimate lon!in!s of the human
heart will demand to &e filled in another way.
0o you know that the relationship I have wrestled with most is that of the #hurch? That's
partly &ecause all I saw for so lon! was that the #hurch wanted my "death" &ut did not
know how to help me enter into "life". oth need to &e connected or else there is nothin!
left &ut stress( fear and despair. The real discipline is em&racin! my new life1 my new
identity in #hrist. I reali"ed recently that when the 2ord was speakin! to me a&out sin( He
was not condemnin! me as I e3pected &ut simply remindin! me that I was operatin! out
of an old identity / not the one hidden in #hrist % and He was remindin! me that I was
&etter than that / that I had a &etter hope and a new life to live. 4rom that place He was
invitin! me to return toward Him and re,oice that I was( in fact( a 5new creation6.
In his letter to the 7hilippians( 7aul is clearly and repeatedly pointin! toward the
partnership of repentance and re,oicin!1 layin! down death in order to !rasp new life.
7hilippians 89 :%;; 5<ore than that( I count all thin!s to &e loss in view of the surpassin!
value of knowin! #hrist =esus my 2ord( for whom I have suffered the loss of all thin!s(
and count them &ut ru&&ish so that I may !ain #hrist( and may &e found in Him( not
havin! a ri!hteousness of my own derived from the 2aw( &ut that which is throu!h faith
in #hrist( the ri!hteousness which comes from God on the &asis of faith( that I may know
Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferin!s( &ein!
conformed to His death1 in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.6
I am the bread of life Broken bread- Jesus breaking bread - children have you no
food.
I still stru!!le to han! on in the midst of life>s storms lon! enou!h to reali"e God is after
makin! me into food( i.e.( somethin! "nourishin!" for others.
)s a matter of fact that is the other question I keep seein!1 =esus askin! 7eter and the
others after His resurrection "#hildren( have you no food?" I hear it over and over every
day. In the ?)'@ it says( 5#hildren( you do not have any fish( do you?6 *?ote the
Harvest here is death for the fish+.
2ook at the story in =ohn A;. It is like an epilo!ue after the closin! thou!hts of =ohn AB.
=esus has already shown up in livin! color and &lown throu!h their utter despair over His
death with a startlin! encore entrance( the release of the Holy 'pirit into them and the
in,unction to for!ive sin. 2uke>s version of the story then plu!s in a sweet little detail . . .
He says to them( 5Hey( !ot any food?6 *Then( after ei!ht more days( Thomas !ets to
touch Him.+
)nyway( some unspecified amount of time later( 7eter says( 5I>m !oin! fishin!6. =ames(
=ohn( Thomas( ?athaniel and two others not named decide they>re in and off they !o.
Interestin! who was han!in! out to!ether that ni!ht isn>t it?
=ohn A;9 'imon 7eter said to them( "I am !oin! fishin!." They said to him( "We will also
come with you." They went out and !ot into the &oat1 and that ni!ht they cau!ht nothin!.
ut when the day was now &reakin!( =esus stood on the &each1 yet the disciples did not
know that it was =esus. 'o =esus said to them( "#hildren( you do not have any fish( do
you?" They answered Him( "?o." )nd He said to them( "#ast the net on the ri!ht%hand
side of the &oat and you will find a catch." 'o they cast( and then they were not a&le to
haul it in &ecause of the !reat num&er of fish. Therefore that disciple whom =esus loved
said to 7eter( "It is the 2ord." 'o when 'imon 7eter heard that it was the 2ord( he put his
outer !arment on *for he was stripped for work+( and threw himself into the sea. ut the
other disciples came in the little &oat( for they were not far from the land( &ut a&out one
hundred yards away( dra!!in! the net full of fish. 'o when they !ot out on the land( they
saw a charcoal fire already laid and fish placed on it( and &read. =esus said to them(
"rin! some of the fish which you have now cau!ht." 'imon 7eter went up and drew the
net to land( full of lar!e fish( a hundred and fifty%three1 and althou!h there were so many(
the net was not torn. =esus said to them( "#ome and have &reakfast." ?one of the
disciples ventured to question Him( "Who are Cou?" knowin! that it was the 2ord. =esus
came and took the &read and !ave it to them( and the fish likewise. *-emind you of the
feedin! of the multitudes?+ This is now the third time that =esus was manifested to the
disciples( after He was raised from the dead.
?ow look at 7eter>s last letter
A7eter ;9;8ff
;8
I consider it ri!ht( as lon! as I am in this earthly dwellin!( to stir you up
&y way of reminder( knowin! that the layin! aside of my earthly dwellin! is imminent( as
also our 2ord =esus #hrist has made clear to me.
I am content in the wrestlin! &ecause I don't want a trite solution to all of the reason's
why these questions are &efore me &ut there is this other question that came up in front of
me. It is this article called "The ait" where the 2ord has posed this question( "What is
the &ait you are usin!?" It talks a&out somethin! that is at the core of our hearts in IH.7%
2I$The urn9 2on! Island % true love % and articulates what we have &een prayin! for
week after week for 8 years now. I hope it stren!thens you and I welcome your thou!hts
a&out the questions posed and how they relate to one another. <ay&e it can lead to
!rowth all around. love( t