13 Like a snow-cooled drink at harvest time
is a trustworthy messenger to the one who sends him;
he refreshes the spirit of his master.
14 Like clouds and wind without rain
is one who boasts of gifts never given.
Those of us who fancy ourselves to be gardeners are probably well-acquainted with the situations in these verses. For though we may not have acres of grain to harvest, we have likely spent a great deal of time working and sweating between the rows, especially at the time of harvest. Usually that comes at a time when there is less rain, so our work is often hot and dusty, too. If the weather is not cooperating, there may not even be a breeze stirring --- and many a farmer and gardener alike has looked up at the sky and contemplated a promising cloud bank; but then the clouds move on without dispensing any of the rain we wanted.
The dust and heat parch our throats --- but we have it much easier than the harvesters of Solomon's day. For them, a drink would have come from a skin sewn into a water vessel, taken with them into the fields. No cold drinks here. A little luckier were those who worked near a well; they could let down a vessel and draw up water that was at least a little cooler. Imagine how it would have felt if they could have sipped a drink of water cooled in, or melted from -- snow! How clean and refreshing it would have felt! For a while, the cares and dusty conditions would have been forgotten. The body and mind would both be refreshed.
Solomon is noting here that it is just as much of a relief, and just as refreshing, for someone to be able to fully rely on a "messenger." That if that person is trustworthy, he or she is far better than clouds and wind which give no rain.
Now, you and I may not be sent as messengers in the way that Solomon would send runners through his kingdom, on official business. But we are often asked by others to perform small tasks, or to complete a job, or minister in some way. If we don't follow through, and finish the job, we are just like those clouds and winds that don't really accomplish anything.
We must see our task as a gift -- not a chore. It may be a small thing, but it is a chance to prove to someone else that "hey, you can count on me!" It is a gift, to be able to offer that completed task to our Father as an offering.
In another application of these verses, you and I are messengers each and every day for our Lord. Are we trustworthy messengers? Are we truly serving Him, or are we letting self creep in? In other words, are we dispensing the gospel (either aloud or by quiet example) for His glory, or are we seeking glory for ourselves? We are ambassadors for His kingdom -- and ambassadors are known and accepted by their credentials.....what are our credentials that we are showing for proof? The fruits of the Spirit? Or snippets of anger, and self, and spite? It's ironic -- not only can we not fool Him, but we can't fool the unsaved, either.
Let's be trustworthy messengers for our Father, and be refreshment to Him.
is a trustworthy messenger to the one who sends him;
he refreshes the spirit of his master.
14 Like clouds and wind without rain
is one who boasts of gifts never given.
Those of us who fancy ourselves to be gardeners are probably well-acquainted with the situations in these verses. For though we may not have acres of grain to harvest, we have likely spent a great deal of time working and sweating between the rows, especially at the time of harvest. Usually that comes at a time when there is less rain, so our work is often hot and dusty, too. If the weather is not cooperating, there may not even be a breeze stirring --- and many a farmer and gardener alike has looked up at the sky and contemplated a promising cloud bank; but then the clouds move on without dispensing any of the rain we wanted.
The dust and heat parch our throats --- but we have it much easier than the harvesters of Solomon's day. For them, a drink would have come from a skin sewn into a water vessel, taken with them into the fields. No cold drinks here. A little luckier were those who worked near a well; they could let down a vessel and draw up water that was at least a little cooler. Imagine how it would have felt if they could have sipped a drink of water cooled in, or melted from -- snow! How clean and refreshing it would have felt! For a while, the cares and dusty conditions would have been forgotten. The body and mind would both be refreshed.
Solomon is noting here that it is just as much of a relief, and just as refreshing, for someone to be able to fully rely on a "messenger." That if that person is trustworthy, he or she is far better than clouds and wind which give no rain.
Now, you and I may not be sent as messengers in the way that Solomon would send runners through his kingdom, on official business. But we are often asked by others to perform small tasks, or to complete a job, or minister in some way. If we don't follow through, and finish the job, we are just like those clouds and winds that don't really accomplish anything.
We must see our task as a gift -- not a chore. It may be a small thing, but it is a chance to prove to someone else that "hey, you can count on me!" It is a gift, to be able to offer that completed task to our Father as an offering.
In another application of these verses, you and I are messengers each and every day for our Lord. Are we trustworthy messengers? Are we truly serving Him, or are we letting self creep in? In other words, are we dispensing the gospel (either aloud or by quiet example) for His glory, or are we seeking glory for ourselves? We are ambassadors for His kingdom -- and ambassadors are known and accepted by their credentials.....what are our credentials that we are showing for proof? The fruits of the Spirit? Or snippets of anger, and self, and spite? It's ironic -- not only can we not fool Him, but we can't fool the unsaved, either.
Let's be trustworthy messengers for our Father, and be refreshment to Him.
