Sowing in the morning, sowing seeds of kindness,
Sowing in the noon-tide and the dewy eves;
Waiting for the harvest, and the time of reaping,
We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves.
The blessed Master says, in his Sermon on the Mount, "With what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again." If we attempt great things for God, and expect great things from God, He will bless us accordingly; for He cheers us by saying: "Ye shall reap, if ye faint not."
Mrs. Knowles tells us of instances where this truth has been verified. "One woman, whom I have been visiting for years, but apparently without any success, until a few months since, when she was taken sick, sent for me at that time, and said, 'she felt so sorry she had led such a wicked life,' and putting her arms round my neck, said, earnestly, 'Oh, pray for me, that the Lord will have mercy on me, and save my poor soul.' I did so, and when I rose from my knees, she held my hand in hers, and looking up for some time, she cried, 'Lord help me, and answer the prayers that have been offered for me;' and when I told her to cast herself wholly upon Jesus, that He was ready to save her, she said, 'Oh, but I have been such a sinner.' 'He is ready to save the chief of sinners, if they will only come.' She clasped her hands, crying, 'Oh, Jesus, save me, for I trust in thee.' I left her with a heart full of anxiety, but believing the Lord had begun the good work in her heart, and that in His own good time he would finish it, and I was not disappointed; for in a short time she was brought to rejoice in Christ as her Saviour, and although for weeks she passed through intense suffering, she never complained, but looking up, she would say to her family, and others who came to visit her, 'My Saviour helps me to bear all my trials;' and so he did, for I never saw a more patient sufferer, or a happier death.
"A lady whom I met there said to me, 'You have been sowing seed here a long time, and now you see what encouragement you have to labor.' The family are still out of Christ, but I earnestly hope to see or hear of them all brought to their mother's God.
"Another woman, who did not attend church at all, was like a little child, helpless and humble. Her situation became so critical, none were allowed to see her; but if she heard I was there, she always wanted me to pray with her; and often after offering a short prayer at her bedside, she would take my hand when about to leave her, and say, 'Oh, pray for me;' And when I kissed her, she would look up so earnestly, saying: 'I know you will pray for me.'
"It pleased the Lord to bless the means used for her recovery, and now, nearly well, she cannot express her gratitude to God for having preserved her. A few days since, when I told her of a poor woman who had returned from the hospital not much better, she gave me a dollar for her; indeed, her whole desire seems to be to do good, and bring up her children (she has a large family) in the right way. She said to me, 'When you came at first to see me, and spoke to me about being a sinner, I did not see how it was that I could be so, for I felt I was as good as you was.'
"These are cases that encourage us in our labors, for although our work at the time may seem fruitless, we may safely leave the seed in His hands, who maketh it grow and bud and blossom in His own good time.