SHINING LIGHT

Cultivate: Harvest

By: Gabriela Yareliz

As we break down this concept of cultivating into stages, the last one is harvest. (Hello, fall!)

When you plant seeds and nurture plants, they give fruit (or bloom).

Ms. Casey reminds us to enjoy the fruits God places in our lives. We gain nothing if we are too rushed or distracted to enjoy the fruits of God’s work in us. Always focusing on the negative means we ignore the fruit on the branch, and we let it rot. This is waste.

“Always focusing on the negative means we ignore the fruit on the branch, and we let it rot. This is waste.”

“Harvesting means noticing the fruit God has grown in your life and doing something with it,” Lara Casey writes.

“Harvesting means noticing the fruit God has grown in your life and doing something with it,” Lara Casey writes.

She reminds us to constantly be looking at our mindset. Our mindset is where we started. Mindset determines what can be planted. If there is no fruit or enjoyment of fruit, we naturally have to go back to this.

Mindset is how we frame our lives, and whether we give ourselves the opportunity to grow.

Ms. Casey gives us an example, in her book, on paying attention to our mindset and how we allow ourselves to enjoy the fruit in our lives.

The example is to view our responsibilities through an “I get to” lens, rather than an “I have to” lens. For example, rather than saying “I have to cook dinner,” we can say, “I get to cook dinner for my spouse or children.” Not everyone has a spouse and children to cook for. Not everyone has what is in your refrigerator.

Having the correct mindset is to color things with gratitude.

Let us always remember the privilege we have to enjoy the gifts God has bestowed on us.

We show our gratitude through our approach to life, but we can cultivate our gratitude in practical hands-on ways, like a gratitude journal. Listing what we are grateful for is an amazing way to start off the day. Stating our gratitude as the first thing we mention in prayer, each morning, is a way of using gratitude to grow our relationship with God.

In the end, life is never about whatever advantages or blessings we gain but about the Blessor. What matters is our relationship with the Provider not the provision, and that is what we must cultivate. As we discussed, the fruit is never about us, it’s about how we allow God to bless others through us.

“What matters is our relationship with the Provider not the provision, and that is what we must cultivate.”

This piece isn’t about productivity or gratitude hacks. There are plenty of articles about that. This is just a simple reminder to slow down. Take a moment to observe the fruit God is growing and enjoy it, and allow others to enjoy it to. Let’s be intentional because there is no other way to cultivate what matters.

“Let’s be intentional because there is no other way to cultivate what matters.”

I hope that through this three part series you are inspired to cultivate what matters in your life. For more from Lara Casey, pick up her book Cultivate, and check out her lovely site, Cultivate What Matters, filled with so many resources for the busy woman, like you and me.

Check out our post on Cultivate on Instagram. Drop us a line and let us know how we can pray for you, as you begin to cultivate. Cultivate What Matters and Ms. Lara Casey have partnered with us to give one of our readers a Write the Word journal.

To enter: 1. Find our Cultivate post, and let us know what you would like to cultivate; 2. Make sure to be following @modernwitnesses and @cultivatewhatmatters; 3. Tag at least three people you are inviting to cultivate, in this season. IMPORTANT: Open only to residents of the United States. Winner will be chosen on October 4, 2018 and announced on October 5, 2018. The winner will receive her prize directly from Cultivate What Matters. A special thank you to Cultivate What Matters, Ms. Lara Casey and Ms. Marissa Kloess for making this possible. 

If you missed it, check out Part I and Part II.