What Are You Waiting For?
Have you been sowing, serving, and yearning for God's destiny in your life, yet, in some way, you're still waiting for the harvest? Be encouraged by this promise today: "Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them" (Psalm 126:5–6 NIV).
I believe God is extending an invitation to all of us who have a prophetic calling: "Step out of longing and into living from the harvest that is already yours."
A Vision of Seed and a Dream of Harvest
Recently, as I was praying for someone, the Holy Spirit brought a picture to mind: I saw a woman walking, carrying a large cloth filled with seed. At the same time, I felt her heart was dwelling on Psalm 126, especially verse 5, "Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy."
(Note: When I describe a vision, it's usually a vivid impression in my mind's eye accompanied by a strong sense of God's presence. This is not an "open"/physical vision. I believe all prophetic words, encounters, and visions should be compatible with Scripture and need to be weighed up.)
In my vision, I knew she was filled with longing and faith, and that the seeds she carried represented her gifts, experiences, and dreams. Suddenly, I heard the Holy Spirit say, "Ruth leaving the threshing floor."
No detail of the vision changed, and yet the entire context shifted! The contrast between the first picture—loss, labor, and longing (Psalm 126)—and the second of inheritance (Ruth 3), struck me deeply. Like a wave, the revelation swept over me. I soon realized this was a word to share more widely. And I pray these insights encourage you today.
From Longing to Living: Recognize the Harvest Is Already Yours
The first picture of the woman with the seed represents the longing many of us feel. We've sown in tears, we've prayed, and we've waited. But Ruth's story reveals a shift: She was no longer laboring for the harvest, but living from it.
Here's some background: At the start of the book of Ruth, we meet Ruth as a widowed Moabite woman who followed her mother-in-law Naomi to Bethlehem. The two women relied on charity, and while gleaning in the fields, Ruth met Boaz. He was a wealthy relative of Ruth's late husband who was eligible to be a "kinsman redeemer," according to the Jewish law (see Leviticus 25:47–55). (Photo via Unsplash)
Boaz, the landowner, eventually pledged to marry Ruth. The grain he tipped into Ruth's cloak was not seed to be sown but grain to be eaten. It was a sign of covenant provision, a gift. That barley was already harvested and threshed and evidence of her inheritance by covenant.
Through the covenant of this second marriage, a lost inheritance was restored and a new one gained. Boaz and Ruth's son, Obed, was the grandfather of King David!
In our own journeys, there is a similar invitation: The Holy Spirit is opening our eyes to see that the harvest isn't ahead of us; it's already here (John 4:35)! It's ours because of Jesus' finished work.
No matter what you've sown—your tears, your prayers, your service—be assured that your promised harvest is already gathered in Jesus.
From Labor to Rest: Step Into Covenant Provision
The woman carrying seed had much work in front of her of sowing, tending, and waiting. But Ruth's posture was different. She didn't work for this grain, or thresh it, although she had done so before. This time, she simply received it.
Boaz's role as kinsman redeemer is symbolic of Christ, our Redeemer:
"For your Creator will be your husband; the Lord of Heaven's Armies is His name! He is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of all the earth." (Isaiah 54:5 NLT)
The Holy Spirit is highlighting a paradigm shift from striving to abiding, lack to abundance, and laboring to resting in what Christ has already accomplished. As prophetic people and leaders, it's easy to slip into a mindset of striving. But the Lord invites us to live from His provision, not our performance. This is a season to shift our focus from waiting to receiving and participating.
Even when we have not seen the harvest, it exists in eternal reality! God is reminding us today, He has abundance for us—not earned by effort but inherited through our relationship with Him. (Photo via Wikimedia Commons)
From Vulnerability to Divine Appointment: Put on Your Mantle
A pivotal moment in Ruth's story is when Naomi instructs her: "Wash yourself and anoint yourself, put on your best garment and go down to the threshing floor" (Ruth 3:3 NKJV).
Ruth didn't know how Boaz would respond. She was vulnerable, yet she clothed herself in her best. The Holy Spirit is ministering this to each of us: Put on your best robe. Clothe yourself with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, and patience (Colossians 3:12). Your vulnerability is not a weakness; it's a doorway to encountering Jesus, who sees you and shares His abundance with you.
"I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called—His holy people who are His rich and glorious inheritance.
"I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe Him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms." (Ephesians 1:18–20 NLT)
The Mantle: Your Destiny Harvest Awaits
The cloak Ruth carried wasn't just a garment but a mantle of promise. She surrendered it to Boaz, and he filled it with barley grain—a provision that was also a sign of her future.
I believe the Lord is saying to those who have been waiting and longing for their mantle:
• "You already wear it."
• "I am anointing it."
• "I am filling it with an abundant harvest."
From this place, your ministry will begin to unfold powerfully. You will pour out from the abundance you carry, and it will be nourishment for many and a legacy for future generations.
This is your season of harvest; step into it with joy and faith!
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Helen Calder
Enliven Ministries
Email:Â helen@enlivenpublishing.com
Website:Â www.enlivenpublishing.com
Helen Calder is a prophetic minister and writer, and founder of Enliven Ministries, in the David McCracken Ministries family. Helen has a unique gift of equipping in the areas of prophetic ministry, discernment and prayer. She is known for Enliven Blog, an online prophetic training and mentoring resource that reaches thousands of people globally. Helen and Malcolm have been married for thirty-seven years and are at home in Planetshakers Church, Melbourne, Australia.
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