We Reap What We Sow: The Ripple Effect
- Freshly Squeezed Chronicle
- Aug 29
- 2 min read
Burnette, R. L. (2025) The Ripple Effect
“Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone — especially to those in the family of faith.”Galatians 6:8-10 NLT
Enjoying another beautiful Vegas sunrise, and a thought strikes me. We truly reap what we sow. Some religions teach this as karma or various other lines of thought, and we’ve witnessed each other and plenty of others reap, but why does this matter?
When I was a young teen mother, I had a bad temper. I was angry at my choices, angry I’d ruined my life at such a young age, and angry at various family members who had their hand in my demise. All of that set aside, I was always thinking of the way I treated others and seeing it as a ripple effect.
For example, if I gave someone a dirty look, perhaps that person would go home and slap his wife, who in turn would berate her child, who would kick their family dog, who’d die in a month due to his silent suffering of an injury that could’ve been avoided.
Do you ever stop to think about the look on your face? Is it full of judgmental glares? Do you see yourself as better than others, never making a moment to offer a friendly hello or a nod someone’s way that you visibly watch their eyes light up, knowing they've been seen? Do you even have the bandwidth for that, or are you yourself full of the pain and frustration of daily living in a society that rarely looks up?
When we take a moment to smile, offer a gentle nod in favor of someone’s presence, or open a door for another weary traveler, we are not only doing something that will keep our hearts alive, but God only knows the timely, far-reaching effects our actions have.
We are meant for community.
We are designed to be there for one another, and we are called to do that despite how we’ve been treated. This is tough, and can be hard to swallow, yet the truth remains.
We reap what we sow, and oftentimes we reap much more than we’ve sown, so why not practice?
Why not make an effort today to extend one kindness, knowing that God is keeping the final score and countless people could be impacted in a positive and meaningful way simply because we laid down our rights to feel, think, and act anyway we please and open our eyes to the reality of a world in desperate need of our smiles.
Comments