A dear friend, Jodi Kozan, is partnering with me in hosting a women’s conference next month entitled, “Because You Matter.” (Feb 4-6, get details here: https://www.queenshouse.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Because-You-Matter-Retreat-for-Women-February-2022-brochure-1.pdf) The title came to me in the form of a poem that’s on the first page of our Hummingbird Circle website. So that you don’t have to reference back, I’ll include it here:
Because You Matter
You shouldn’t be left alone,
Discarded, in the cold;
Because you matter.
And should your voice rise up like thunder
Silence will fall in wonder;
Because you matter.
The labours you choose to tend
Will reap big dividends;
Because you matter.
The crops within your fields
In time will lend a yield;
Because you matter.
Your tread will leave deep imprints
For future feet to sprint;
Because you matter.
Your stories deserve good endings,
Golden threads and silver linings;
Because you matter.
Your life is worth living,
Your legacy, recording;
Because you matter.
Not a poet but a songwriter, I struggled whether or not to include an art medium I am not well versed in. I know many poets who could pen these thought more eloquently and profoundly; undoubtedly they already have! But one day while working on this website, the phrase, “because you matter” played over and over in my head like a catchy pop song. I couldn't shake it. It was if Heaven was shouting in my ear, “Don’t forget to tell them how much they matter us!”
Some of the thoughts that came with that phrase served to open my eyes to the goodness of our Creator in a new and fresh way. Growing up in a strict, fundamentalist home, the saying, “you will reap what you sow” was often used, but in a negative sense. If I engaged in malicious gossip I would reap strained relationships, if I lied I would reap distrust, disobeyed, I would be punished, etc. It never dawned on me that this truth could be turned to the positive, ie: If I work hard, I will reap a reward; if I invest into people, they will invest into me; if I am forgiving, then the Lord will willingly forgive me.
In the sowing and reaping principle, God has sent a message through the laws of nature that each and every person on this planet can and does matter! We have all been given a built-in reward system for doing what is right. It motivates us to behave in a manner that could be called productive, and lets us know that our efforts are not without merit.Though actions and thoughts may seem invisible or hidden, God notices and He has insured that one day, fruit from our labours will be noticed as well.
If we follow this trail of thought, we can sense the excitement God must have felt when creating each and every one of us. How much fun he must have had, imagining our potential with all the good things we could eventually reap and enjoy.
In this New Year, may we not grow weary of well-doing, but take comfort in knowing that El Rohi, the God Who Sees, desires our success and prosperity even more than we do. Sometimes on earth, we come against unforeseen circumstances - like a pandemic or a famine - that seems to temporarily rob us of the principle of sowing and reaping. In such times, we can begin to question whether our hard work and labour will ever pay off. We wonder if we are of any value, shut up in our homes or isolated from family members and loved ones, possibly unable to provide for them.
Let's remember that not only do the works of our hands count, but also the rumination of the mind and spirit. Psalm 1 tells us that those who meditate on God's words (ie the law of sowing and reaping!) are like a tree, bearing fruit at the right time:
But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season.Their leaves never wither,
and they prosper in all they do. Psalm 1:2,3 NLT
Unlike most fruit trees that drop their leaves in the cold autumn and winter seasons, these trees do not wither (think citrus, banana, avocado and coconut trees which keep their green leaves all year round).
These verses remind me of a person, injured, sick, or experiencing loss, who ends offering comfort to the ones that have come to comfort them. The deep well that has been dug by the meditations of their heart becomes the river the tree is planted by in Psalm 1. From this wellspring, they are able to give to others even when through their own hardship or pain.
Today we get to make the decision about what kind of fruit tree we will be, an evergreen or deciduous (from Latin meaning that which falls down). The decision is made based on what we will choose to meditate on. It is important because we do not just affect ourselves, but the lives of those around us. Hebrews 12:1 talks about this:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. NLT
Who are these witnesses? Not only are these the living who surround our daily lives, but in this context, they are those who have gone on ahead of us into eternity, specifically the martyrs of the faith, and probably include our loved ones and relations as well as angelic beings. Isn't it amazing to realize that value of our existence and our choices extends even into Heaven?
Remember, in Heaven's economy nothing is wasted. Our days are recorded in Heaven's book:
You saw who you created me to be before I became me! Before I'd ever seen the light of days, the number of days you planned for me were already recorded in your book.
Psalms 139:16
Our journeys are mapped by Heaven:
You've kept track of all my wandering and my weeping. Psalm 56:8
Our tears are kept in Heaven's carafes:
You've stored my many tears in your bottle - not one will be lost. Psalm 56:8
Even if you are in a season of weeping now, remember that even your tears can act as seed bearing fruit - because you matter to God, your journey matters to God, your sadness and joy matters to God, your failure and success. YOU MATTER!
Those who sow their tears as seeds will reap a harvest with joyful shouts of glee. They may weep as they go out carrying their seed to sow, but they will return with joyful laughter and shouting with gladness as they bring back armloads of blessing and a harvest overflowing.
Psalm 126:5,6 TPT
This is my prayer for each of us this year: No matter what 2022 holds in store, whether we sow with tears or with gladness, whether in famine or plenty, that they will be seeds of faith planted in the knowledge that God loves us, that we matter to Him, and that He has committed Himself to help us reap a
harvest of joy. Please consider sowing into your story with us at Hummingbird Circle. You can do this by joining us for our upcoming seminars, monthly meetings or coaching sessions, or taking out a membership, opening up at the end of January.
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