Are You Preparing Your Field For Rain?

Two farmers face a devastating drought. Both desperately need rain. Both pray earnestly for God to send water from heaven. But only one goes out and plows his field, plants his seed, and prepares for the harvest he's asking God to provide.

Which farmer truly believed God would answer?

This simple story cuts to the heart of a profound spiritual truth: We often want God to change our circumstances, our workplaces, our communities, and the people around us—but we're unwilling to be the instruments He uses to bring about that change.

The Valley of Dry Bones
The prophet Ezekiel once stood in a valley filled with dry bones—a haunting picture of hopelessness and death. These bones represented God's people in captivity, worn out and spiritually depleted. Perhaps you've felt that way yourself: dry, exhausted, with nothing left to give.

But God asked Ezekiel a remarkable question: "Can these bones live?"

Then He commanded the prophet to speak His word over them. As Ezekiel obeyed, something extraordinary happened. There was a rattling sound. Bones came together. Tendons and flesh appeared. Skin covered them. And finally, breath entered them, and they became a vast army.

The catalyst for this miraculous transformation? The Word of the Lord.

Not money. Not human effort. Not wishful thinking. Only God's Word, spoken in faith and obedience, brought life to what was dead.

This is the power available to us today. But here's the critical question: Are we willing to be the ones who speak that word into the dry places around us?

The Great Commission We're Avoiding
Jesus gave His followers a clear final command before ascending to heaven: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."

We know this passage well. We've heard it preached countless times. Yet somehow, we've become experts at passing the ball rather than taking the shot.

Imagine a basketball game where the church is on offense against the forces of darkness. The ball keeps getting passed around the perimeter. "You shoot it." "No, you shoot it." "I'm not qualified." "Someone else should do it." Eventually, the opposition realizes no one is ever going to shoot, and they simply walk away. The game is lost not because we were overpowered, but because we refused to engage.

We see the brokenness around us. We recognize the people in our lives who desperately need Jesus. We pray for change. But we wait for someone else—someone more qualified, more gifted, more courageous—to actually do something about it.

Meanwhile, souls hang in the balance.

When God Calls the Unlikely
The book of Acts tells the remarkable story of Saul of Tarsus, a violent persecutor of Christians who made it his mission to eliminate followers of Jesus. He approved of Stephen's stoning and was on his way to Damascus with authorization to arrest and execute more believers when Jesus confronted him on the road.

A blinding light. A voice from heaven. Suddenly, the greatest threat to the early church was lying blind and helpless in Damascus.

For Christians in that city, this must have felt like answered prayer. The man who wanted them dead could no longer see. He was neutralized. They were safe.

Among those believers was a man named Ananias. When God spoke to him in a vision, Ananias probably expected encouragement or instruction about staying safe. Instead, God gave him an address—the exact location where Saul was staying—and a shocking command: "Go to him."

Ananias' response is refreshingly honest: "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name."

Translation: "Are you serious? This guy kills people like me. Can't we just leave him blind and call it a day?"

But God's response was firm: "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel."

The Faith to Obey When It Doesn't Make Sense
Here's where the story gets convicting. Ananias had every human reason to refuse. His life was genuinely at risk. His fear was completely rational. Yet he chose to trust God's plan over his own safety.

"So Ananias departed and entered the house, and laying his hands on him, he said, 'Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.'"

Notice what Ananias called him: "Brother Saul." Not "enemy." Not "murderer." Brother.

In that moment of obedience, everything changed. Saul's sight was restored. He was baptized. He was filled with the Holy Spirit. And the man who had been the church's greatest enemy became its greatest missionary.

Nearly half of the New Testament was written by this transformed persecutor. Countless churches were planted through his ministry. The gospel spread throughout the Roman Empire because one man named Ananias said yes when God called him to do something terrifying.

What if Ananias had said no? What if he had pointed to someone else? What if he had fled like Jonah?

What Are You Doing About It?
Take a moment and think about the things in your life or in the world around you that burden your heart. Maybe it's a coworker living a destructive lifestyle. Maybe it's a family member who doesn't know Jesus. Maybe it's a culture of gossip in your workplace or darkness in your community.

You see it. You recognize it's wrong. You might even pray about it.

But what are you doing about it?

This isn't meant to shame you—it's meant to awaken something inside you. Because the truth is, if God has placed that burden on your heart, it's not random. It's not just because you're a caring person. It's because He wants to use you to bring change to that situation.

The only qualification you need is a relationship with Jesus Christ and a willingness to obey.
We tell ourselves all kinds of excuses: "I'm not qualified." "Who am I to say something?" "I might make things worse." "They might reject me." "What if I get too close and they're a bad influence on me?"

But Scripture reminds us: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me."

God doesn't send us alone. The Holy Spirit goes before us, walks beside us, and works through us.

Trusting God's Plan Over Our Own
We struggle to trust God when His plans don't align with ours. We create our own strategies for fixing problems, earning income, or changing circumstances. Then we're surprised when they don't work.

But Isaiah reminds us: "Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock." And Hebrews declares: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."

He is trustworthy. His plans are better than ours. His timing is perfect. His power is unlimited.

The question is: Will we prepare our fields for the rain we're asking Him to send?

The Battle Belongs to the Lord
Both farmers wanted rain. Both prayed for rain. But only one demonstrated faith by preparing for what he was asking God to provide.

If you believe God can change that person, that workplace, that community—then act like it. Pray with expectation. Build relationships. Share your story. Speak truth in love. Prepare yourself to be used.

God is already working. He's already sending the rain. The question is whether we're ready to receive what He's pouring out.

The battle belongs to the Lord, but He invites us to fight on our knees with our heads lifted high. He invites us to be His hands and feet. He invites us to be the Ananias in someone else's story—the one who shows up when it's scary, who obeys when it doesn't make sense, who trusts that God's plans are greater than our fears.

There are powerful things happening all around us. God has not given up on your town, your workplace, your family. He's moving. He's working. He's calling.

The only question that remains is: Will you answer?