“Even though the harvest isn’t what you thought, the harvest is still here. The Lord of the Harvest is always working many steps ahead of us, and what he has produced in and through us is not always immediately evident. . . . You are not forgotten when the harvest looks different than you dreamed.”- Jennifer Dukes Lee
“So spacious is he (Jesus), so expansive, that everything of God finds its proper palace in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe — people and things, animals and atoms — get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross.”- Colossians 1:18-20 (MSG)
In Chapter 12 (“When a Dream Dies”) of Growing Slow, Jennifer Dukes Lee talks about the agonizing time when your dream breaks apart. Like Moses, the good land stretches out before you. But you find yourself unable to enter it.
Most significantly, Jennifer points out, people fall into one of three categories in the midst of grief and suffering.
1. Do. Doers use productivity to mask disappointment. Also, doers quickly adopt a new dream. However, they’re also the most likely to stuff their feelings. Above all, this stuffing can lead to a meltdown or anxiety attack.
2. Think. Thinkers opt to analyze and process. Thus, getting lost in the comfort of their own thoughts enables them to cope while they ‘figure things out.’ But this intellectual journey leaves them prone to internalize. Ultimately, to truly heal, thinkers must open the door to their closed-off feelings to heal.
3. Feel. Feelers put everything on the table, letting every shuddering tear fall. One drawback, though, is that feelers possess the potential to forever believe all they feel or think. Here’s the truth. Emotions serve as release valves, not as steering wheels.
Finally, Jennifer stresses, un-hurrying our hearts means we sit with our feelings. Instead of running from, comparing, or at-leasting those feelings.
Today’s question: What Bible verses most help you connect with the Lord of the Harvest? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Planting seeds produces inner growth”
