Hebrews 11:6 says, ‘But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.’ Many mistakenly rush to the rewarding part of this verse while bypassing the most important part which is ‘to believe that He is.’ What this means is that there is a time or season where you do nothing but believe. I’ll say that again slowly. There is a time or season where you can do nothing but believe. No reaping, rewards, favor or increase happen during this season. And that’s because, ain’t nothing going on but believing. (Pardon my English) This is because God is rooting your faith.

Sowing Seed Into The Heart of Your Life
An example of this can be found in Mark 4:3, 5, 6 which says, ‘Behold, a sower went out to sow…as he sowed…some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away.’ Notice the sower sowed seed. Seed sowing is also referred to as germination which according to Wikipedia is defined as, ‘…the process by which a plant grows from a seed1.’ Within the seed is the embryo of what’s going to grow. And as such, seed is, ‘that from which anything springs, the first principle or origin of2.’ Therefore, God, who is the sower, is attempting to sow life principles or apart of Himself into the earth, a place where growth occurs, which is your heart. Therefore, the Word of God has to have a place to grow – within you. And as we all know, growth takes time. It takes nine months for an embryo to grow into a baby and another eighteen years for that baby to grow into an adult. And such is the case when it comes to rooting your faith.
Much like a seed needs ‘proper temperature, the presence of adequate water, oxygen and a preceding period of dormancy3’ to grow, so does your life. The reason no one is calling you to use your gifts, the reason your business may not be profiting, or the reason your life seems as if it’s in a standstill is because you’re in a period of dormancy, which means ‘not in action and not used4.’ God’s not ready to use you yet. You’re in a state of inactivity where the only thing you can do is believe. If you try to make something happen, you’ll pull up your reward too soon because it hasn’t had an opportunity to grow which simply means you haven’t had an opportunity to actually study that Word to the point where you can be tested in that area – multiple times.
Doing More Than Shouting
Mark 4:17 says that people tend to give seed a little time to grow. Meaning, you’ll do the right thing, make confessions, and wait a little while, but ‘…when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately [you] stumble.’ This is because you weren’t willing to set aside the necessary time that it takes to study, pray and walk that word out. What happens is that you ‘hear the word, [and] immediately receive it with gladness’. Meaning you turn to your neighbor, shout the victory, shake your head and momentarily think how deep, how real, and how what your Pastor just said is speaking to your heart. But you never take the seed of what your Pastor said and actually study and really do it. Or as the second part of our foundation scripture says, ‘diligently seek God’ about it. (Hebrews 11:6)
Which brings me to this: God can’t diligently reward you when you’ve yet to successfully ‘believe that He is.’ You still don’t believe it’s possible to stop smoking, live pain free, see your children saved or live a fulfilled life yet. And that’s because you’re growing and learning how to believe in God. So don’t become disheartened, grow impatient or stop believing. Just come to terms, settle down, and understand that you must go through ‘seedtime and harvest.’ (Gen 8:22) God has sown seed and so have you. Now just let time do what it does…pass. And while it’s passing, keep believing that God is and eventually you will get to the place where He can reward your diligence.
Pray this with me: Heavenly Father, please help me. Teach me how to receive Your Word and literally do what it says, long enough for You to reward me. In Jesus’ name.
Copyright 2016 © Real Issues Ministries®. All rights reserved.
SOURCES:
1 "Germination." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 20 Aug. 2016.
2, 4 "Webster's Dictionary 1828 - Online Edition." Websters Dictionary 1828. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Aug. 2016.
3 "Germination of Seeds." Germination of Seeds. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Aug. 2016.
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