Getting Out What You Put In
“But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.” (2 Corinthians 9:6)
Galatians 6:7-8 is about sowing and reaping: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” Our opening verse is about sowing good, and it tells us that how much good you reap depends on how much good you sow.
Police work is a good example of sowing and reaping good. The more police work you do, the more you gain experience as well as results, and the more you enjoy the job. If you have down time between runs, what do you do? You may need a break to decompress if you’re handling run after run after run, but if you’re not, what do you do with downtime? Lounge around and goof off, or do extra work like traffic stops or public relations visits at businesses or playgrounds?
PR stops give you a chance to interact with decent people, including kids, and for them to interact with you in a less-official capacity. Traffic stops also help you to practice good tactics, besides being important for public safety. You never know what your traffic violator is carrying or what he has done besides speed or blowing a stop sign. As one training officer said, bad guys do not take the bus. Moreover, you never know when a simple traffic stop can turn into a great arrest.
Don’t listen to negative people who say police work is not worth doing your best. Otherwise, you will not put effort into it that you should, you will not enjoy it, citizens will suffer, and criminals will thrive. No matter what anyone says to the contrary, police work is a job from God worth doing your best: “…he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.” (Romans 13:4)
The idea of getting out of it what you put into it also applies to being a Christian. Being a Christian is supposed to be joyful. Jesus Himself even said, “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” (John 15:11) The Lord wants Christians to enjoy their Christian life. If you are a Christian, do you enjoy being a Christian?
If not, how much time do you put into God’s word? Jesus said, “These things have I spoken unto you, …that your joy might be full.” The “these things” Jesus talks of to help us enjoy our Christian life are found in the Bible, but if you don’t put much time into the Bible, you likely won’t get much out of it.
By way of example, some people really love sports. They know stats about teams and players, college and pros. They keep up on sports news. They feed on sports because they love sports, which is not wrong. Yet feeding on Scripture helps you love Scripture more and enjoy your Christian life more.
Psalm 103:20 talks of “…the voice of his [God’s] word.” God’s word has a voice, not audible, but one that speaks to your heart. One way to feed on Scripture is to read aloud. Another is to memorize verses that you like verbatim, then think on them throughout your day. Feeding on God’s word will help you love God’s word, and the more time you put into Scripture, the more benefit you get out of it and enjoy being a Christian more: “O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day.” (Psalm 119:97)