Diligence of a Farmer

Farming produces money from mud! God produces blessings from the same!
The third illustration by Paul to Timothy is the Farmer – common and lowly of note – yet he possesses one of the most admirable qualities – diligence! The determination to take on a long term task and patiently see it through to completion. Unlike the teacher, the soldier, and the athlete, the farmer often works alone. He has no students to stimulate him, no fellow soldiers to fight with, nor any teammates or crowd to cheer him on. This isolation is a real challenge felt by many believers of Paul's day, especially out on the fringes of the Roman Empire – they were often alone!
Because almost every household farmed in some manner, Paul would’ve grown up around farming. Paul certainly would have joined families and friends at dawn and gone to the fields to harvest, if not plow or sow or weed. As a tentmaker, Paul was never afraid of hard work. And farming was almost synonymous with hard work in the first century. The farmer endured the cold, the heat, the rain, and the drought. He works the soil whether it is hard or loose. So Paul teaches Timothy to take on the characteristics of a farmer in his ministry and faith. Join me this week for the third in our series - The Soldier - The Athlete - The Farmer - see you Sunday!
“Surely those men should learn much who find a schoolmaster and a lesson-book in every acre which they cultivate.” C.H. Spurgeon
Pastor Mike