08 Apr Hungry For Harvest
It’s one thing to change your diet, it’s another thing to change your heart. Throughout this experience, we’ll be reflecting on scripture and exploring our deepest hungers and how they can be most truly satisfied. We pray that they give you a taste of the spiritual significance behind Rice & Beans Month, and that you receive generous portions of God’s love and grace.
Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. (II Corinthians 9:10)
Imagine yourself preparing a new garden. You clear away weeds and brush, dig out rocks of all sizes, fertilize and till the soil, irrigate, and even build a fence. Sounds great! But something is missing…
To enjoy beautiful flowers or delicious veggies, you have to plant some seeds. You didn’t do all that work just to leave the garden empty! You have hope for a harvest!
This journey through Rice & Beans Month allows us to grow in faith and deepen our love and compassion for others. It gives us a chance to struggle a bit as we change our daily rhythms with a higher purpose in mind. Much like preparing the garden, these efforts are productive in and of themselves. But the next important step is to plant.
Practically, that means taking the time to add up our grocery savings, and join with many others in donating that money. It’s the culmination of our efforts, and the beginning of the next phase! These “seeds” offer our brothers and sisters in East Africa nutrition for kids with HIV, improved irrigation systems, poultry projects, life-saving aid, and new fields to plant. Your giving scatters seed in many gardens, displacing hunger with a harvest of hope.
Reflection Questions:
As you reflect on your Rice & Beans journey, what gives you the sense that “it’s worth it?”
How has God worked in your life through participating?
Hungry for more? Check out our devotional book called A Common Meal. Full of daily devotions for adults and kids, inspiring stories, and simple recipes—it’s a great way to enrich and deepen your Rice & Beans Month experience.