August 26, 2026
Every harvest begins long before anything is gathered.
There is planting. There is preparation. And eventually, there is a result.
In this Faith Class, Bishop Leon Benjamin concludes the month’s teachings on harvest by turning to Hosea 8 and a challenging biblical principle: what we sow matters.
Before beginning the central lesson, Bishop Benjamin emphasizes preparation.
Using the image of Peter preparing his fishing nets, he explains that receiving a great catch also requires being ready to hold it. A larger opportunity can require greater preparation, stronger foundations, and people willing to work together.
The lesson is simple: don’t wait for the harvest to prepare for it.
Hosea 8:7 declares:
“For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind.”
Bishop Benjamin uses this passage to explore the consequences of what Israel had chosen to sow.
Our actions, decisions, priorities, and even the things we continually give our attention to can become seeds. Eventually, those seeds can produce something.
That makes it important to consider not only what we want to harvest, but what we are planting today.
In Hosea, Israel had turned toward idols rather than remaining faithful to God.
Bishop Benjamin expands this principle beyond physical idols. Anything allowed to occupy the place that belongs to God can begin influencing our decisions and direction.
That is why self-examination matters. We can ask ourselves: What has my attention? What is influencing my choices? And is it drawing me closer to God or further away?
An idol cannot correct us.
But Bishop Benjamin describes God’s correction as part of His relationship with His people. Sometimes being stopped, redirected, or challenged can protect us from continuing down the wrong path.
Correction may be uncomfortable, but it can also give us the opportunity to change what we are sowing before we experience a greater consequence.
Not every opportunity is the right opportunity.
Bishop Benjamin warns against allowing desperation, emotion, or fear to push us into agreements we already know are not right.
Sometimes faith looks like moving forward. Other times, it means having enough discernment to say “no deal” and walk away.
Work alone is not the goal.
Throughout the lesson, Bishop Benjamin returns to the importance of asking whether God is present in what we are building.
Rather than simply asking for more opportunities, more success, or a larger harvest, the deeper prayer becomes: God, bless the work of my hands and work through me.
As the class closes, the conversation turns toward remaining grounded in Scripture.
When uncertainty, fear, or competing voices arise, knowing God’s Word provides a foundation for discernment.
The goal is not simply to recognize what is wrong around us. It is to remain faithful to what God has called us to sow.
