The themes of preparing a field, sowing and reaping keep coming up in different contexts recently, especially with regard to teaching. I teach at a junior high school and am a homeroom teacher. I enjoy it and love what I do, despite the challenges of teaching during covid times. 

Teaching during regular times has its challenges: encouraging kids to learn, doing their best and investing in their studies for their future. I discuss these things with students all the time, as well as with parents. But, not many see the importance of doing their best now in order to reap later on the results of their efforts and be satisfied with them. It makes me sad to see students who genuinely don’t care, sometimes even to the point of showing disrespect to what they are learning. They know they can do better, but don’t want to. It’s just like food. I can prepare it for them and encourage them to eat it, but I can’t force it on them. 

It’s not easy doing our best in something but not always seeing the results we anticipate. Sometimes, we need to wait a bit. Sometimes the results are there, only not in the way we wanted them to be.

I am learning through teaching that I have a responsibility to do what I can. There are things I can’t control. But, there are other things that I can control, such as preparing a field and sowing the seeds. I can’t control how the seeds grow or the fruit they produce. All I can do for those things is pray. God is still in control of all things and what is impossible for me is not impossible at all for Him.

Have you been given a field that you need to sow? Be encouraged to continue to be faithful in that and pray over that field. Then wait for the rain.

© Hannah Kramer