...Of Seasons, and Planting and Growing in God

This morning I am reflecting on Psalm 97:1-2,6,8-12 NIV:

[1] "The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice.
[2] Clouds and thick darkness surround him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne."

[6] "The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all peoples see his glory."

[8] "Zion hears and rejoices and the villages of Judah are glad because of your judgments, Lord.
[9] For you, Lord, are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.
[10] Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
[11] Light shines on the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.
[12] Rejoice in the Lord, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name."

This is true, whether we feel like it is or not!  He reigns over all things!  He reigns over the earth, over every situation!  His kingdom is founded on righteousness and justice!  He is the perfect embodiment of those truths.  His glory is not hidden, it is on display for all the world to see, for nature and creation is full of Your glory!

I was doing some original language research, and saw the NASB translation of verse 11, which I really like.  It reads - Psalm 97:11 NASB: "Light is sown like seed for the righteous And gladness for the upright in heart."

I like the image of light and gladness being sown into our lives.  This allows for a season of hiddenness before the fruit is recognized!  It allows for a season of growing and maturing before the fruit that was sown is seen once again!   This seems to fit into my experience of the way the Lord works, in my life anyway.  Jesus spoke many times of the word being sown like seed.  I understand that imagery, but I would rather have instant fruit.  However God in His infinite and eternal wisdom, knows that we need the planting, sprouting, growing and then harvest.

I was just reflecting on how the seasons affect the fruit.  Depending on the crop, you need rain or dryness, heat or coolness.  There are certain crops you can't grow in certain areas, for instance Bananas don't grow in Minnesota. They say that grapes are sweeter after a hotter and dryer summer.   Here is an excerpt from a vineyard talking about grapes:

"We certainly haven’t had much rain this summer so far, but thankfully, vines tend to like hot and dry weather! It can actually be a great thing for vines to experience a dry season. Why? Well, it forces the roots of older vines to dig deeper to find water, further establishing them for future growth.

There are, however, some key times when the vines need water: just before flowering, just after the berries fill out and when they hit bench closure stage. Once you have veraison, though and the berries start changing colour, not much rain is needed. That being said, the newly planted vines require regular water, and we’ve been watering weekly so that the roots don’t dry out.

How else is a lack of rain great news? Well, it helps to keep down the disease and helps out with weed management (less weeds means less competition with the vines)." ( https://adamoestate.com/dry-summer-effect-grapes/)

Is it possible that there is some spiritual truth here?  Do dry seasons cause us to sink our roots (heart, mind and understanding) deeper into the word?  For me, absolutely.  Do I need water (Grace from the Holy Spirit)?  Absolutely!  In my life it seems there are seasons of regular encounters with the Holy Spirit, other times it is drier, and yet the blessings of my encounters remain.  When I was young in the Lord, it seemed like I had a season of rapid growth and encouragement.  It seemed that I was being bathed in the Spirit, and using the analogy of the vine, that is required to keep the roots moist and growing, so they don't dry out.  Finally, spiritual dryness is a time where I see more of the things that are not of God.  In Missouri late in a dry summer, it seems the only things that are green are the weeds.  Is it possible the Lord, enables us to walk through dry seasons so that we can clearly see the weeds in our own lives?

Going back to the verses, we are called to praise God, period.  In seasons, out of season, in dryness, in rain, in blessing, in struggling, whatever our frame of mind, it is good for us to remind ourselves of God's sovereignty!  It is good to sing songs and proclaim God's goodness, righteousness and justice, even if we don't feel it, for maybe that helps us send our roots deeper!  It certainly does my heart good to remind myself of the character of God!

Amen, The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice! Rejoice in the Lord, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name." (Ps 97:1,12)