The Harvest That Abounds

By Geraldine Cocklin

These stories represent journeys made by many wise old warriors. The warriors spoke of mysterious balms; timing in our lives (being at the right place at the right time); the loss of hope due to certain circumstances; different types of famines in our lives, personal stress, and secrets; the exploitation of the elderly; the old mothers of the church; wise counsel; and the many joys we find in life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 27, 2020
• ISBN: 9781098032012

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The Harvest That Abounds

Geraldine Cocklin

Copyright © 2020 by Geraldine Cocklin

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Anchored

The Potter’s Wheel

The Promise

The Race of Life

Life Has Many Steps

In the Midnight Hour

Broken Pieces

Battle Wounds

Hostage

Suspicious

Disappointments

A Lifeline

Patience

School Days

Under the Influence

A Balm

The Clear Picture

A Shaking in Our Lives

Timing

The Loss of Hope

Never Will We Thirst Again

A Harvest in a Time of Famine

Sin Turned into a Harvest

The Family Tree

Who Can We Lean On?

A Touch from the Master’s Hand

A Sight to Behold

A Physician

A Tent

A Resting Place

Restoration

A Knock at Your Door

A Confrontation

A Shelter

A Label, Assumptions, and a Mark

A Way Out

A Desire to Return Home

A Narrow Passage

All Alone

A Puzzle Piece

Why So Many Tears?

A Liquid Balm

Crumple

Delivered

Cutting Ourselves

Cousin Peggie

On the Run

Mr. Benjamin

Coming around the Bend

Mrs. Viola

The Old Hunter

Mr. Bill

The Rev

Ms. Mamie

Mrs. Coot

The Old Farmer

Mrs. Nettie

A Visit to Mrs. Margaree

Visitors Welcome

The Silent Pain Carrier

Ending

A Hiding Place

The Source of Our Joy

A Dwelling Place in a Pit

The Master Builder

Medicating the Hurts

Seeds of Unresolved Issues

Remember

The Price of Humility

The Gem

Kindling

A Way of Escape

An Invaluable Hookup

The Master Potter

A Prayer for Our Children

A Beacon of Hope

A Tiny Vine

In the Midst of a Storm

A Dormant Period in Our Lives

Going through a Storm

Mr. Charlie

What You Don’t See

Hurt and Pain

Falling into a Pit

Social Pressures

Fear

Direction

Peace of Mind

Rain in Our Lives

A Dead End

Communication Skills

Hope

Carefully Hidden

The Truth Revealed

Just a Matter of Time

Flight

A Free Check Sign and Cash

Catching up with Time

Hold My Hand

Early Registration

All Is Never Lost

The Front Porch

Favoritism

Unexpected Circumstances

The Allowance of Fear in Our Lives

The Uncertainty of Change

Wise Counsel

Preface

Indeed, we realize that verbal abuse leaves no noticeable marks, scars, or signs, like physical abuse. Can we be positively sure that verbal abuse doesn’t leave scars? What would happen if we uncover and reveal our innermost feelings to be examined? What would we find and would we be shocked? Though we can’t see any obvious scars from the outside, there is a chance the scars do exist. They may be hidden so very deep, uncovering a few layers will not reveal what we know exists deep within us!

How are we healed from the inside out?

How are we able to stand under the pressures of verbal or physical abuse?

Chapter 1

The Journey

Anchored

The Potter’s Wheel

The Promise

The Race of Life

Life Has Many Steps

In the Midnight Hour

Broken Pieces

Battle Wounds

Hostage

Suspicious

Disappointments

A Lifeline

Patience

School Days

Under the Influence

Anchored

The different waves that sweep through our lives have a way of tossing one back and forth. We seem to be engulfed in a storm and driven in directions of uncertainty.

We must all be anchored and rooted in truth and knowledge. Without these two components, one may become lost in the pressures and stresses of the world. We must be able to stand no matter the circumstances.

Observing an old tree, which had an enormous deep decay in its side, the decay had hollowed out a large entranceway into the innermost areas of the tree. The opening permitted infectious elements to travel in and eat away at its inner core. Though the tree was under attack, it stood securely rooted and anchored. In our daily lives, though we are met on every hand with adversities and problems, we must stand. Though pains of yesteryears are hidden deep in the crevasses of our lives, we must be rooted and anchored in the assurance and expectation that we will all come through these storms of life!

The Bible tells a story in Act 27:1–4, about a man called Paul whose portfolio was filled with different adversities. This particular story speaks about Paul’s journey on a ship. During his travel, a storm came up at sea.

Paul had advised the captain before he set sail that they needed to wait, for there was a storm approaching. Disregarding Paul’s advice, the captain set sail and, shortly after setting sail, they ran into a storm.

The story goes on to say they lightened their load and believed in Paul’s God to save them from harm. Consequently, for days, everything was dark around them, to the point they didn’t know night from day. Though the storm was raging around them, everyone held on to the hope that their lives were going to be spared and they wouldn’t be engulfed in the storm! The story ends with everyone being saved and the only fatal casualty loss was the ship.

During our waves and struggles through hazardous storms, let us not jump ship until we have formed a rescue plan for safety. One must wait through storms; in some cases, for the peace and answers we seek.

Once safe, start laying a new foundation for your life, making sure one is anchored in a protective covering of truth and knowledge!

The Potter’s Wheel

How often we look at certain areas of our lives and we wish to make a change. There are hidden places in our lives we all seek to adjust, erase, or restore. Some things can never be totally erased from our lives. They can be polished or smoothed out so as to not be very noticeable, especially if it’s something we wish to stay hidden from sight.

As we mature and grow into adulthood, many things about our manner, our life, and our past we would like to redo. Most people feel, if they had a chance as a potter molds and shapes clay, they, too, would want to do the same with their lives. What an effortless task it would be if we could place ourselves on a potter’s wheel for a few hours and begin to work on our lives. The first thing in the procedure would have to be when we release all the unwanted pain from our lives. That would immediately fall to the floor, making a loud crashing sound. As we continue to mold and shape ourselves, all of our imperfections would be tossed to the floor, alone with all of our many worries.

Next, all of our doubts and inhibitions would be thrown against the wall because of the speed of the wheel at this point. The wheel is turning in a circular motion, spinning endlessly, developing a new creation. The memory of past failures and disappointments would begin to unravel and slowly fall to the floor, as these parts of our lives seem a little heavier than other parts.

The potter’s hands leave the spinning mass of clay only to be moistened so his hands will not stick to the clay, causing unwanted blemishes. Unlike the clay, the creator of our lives keeps his hands on our lives, though we cannot see them. Though the intensity of our battles is ever raging, our creator is always present!

After all of the blemishes and rough edges are smoothed out, we can now shape a mold of our lives with the raw material that is left over. We all know, just as clay has to be baked before we paint it, we, too, have to go through a stage. Our stages are considered the fiery stages of life. The place where we have all of our blemishes and imperfections stored deep inside of our lives will have to be heated up to rid ourselves of unwanted flaws in our lives. After this heating process, we can now polish and gloss a finished product, keeping in mind we can’t paint or polish over blemishes in our lives that should have been taken out by the heating process.

The transformation we all go through is as if we all somehow have been shaped and molded on a potter’s wheel. Though physically we may not have sat on a potter’s wheel as we find masses of clay, but surely we were shaped and molded for a certain destiny.

The creator of our lives has a plan and direction for our lives. When we are molded and cast for certain directions to take in life, we find ourselves out of focus and we normally lose our way or direction. Just as the potter has to sear or mend cracks in the vessels he’s making, so are those things in our lives being seared by many trials and adversities!

In the end, the potter has a beautiful vessel after the many stages of preparation are completed. We, too, after all of our trials, are a new creation. We endure the adversities life has placed upon us and we go forward.

Knowingly, if we become broken in any areas of our lives, we are assured that the creator and the potter of our lives can put us back together as many times as we require it!

For we are more than a clay pot, we are his creations in his own image. There is only one of a kind; an original seal on our lives placed there by our creator. Though we bore labels from different walks of life, the label our creator places on our lives is eternal.

What Label

Are

You

Wearing?

The Promise

Everyone has experienced some type of traffic jams and stalled traffic for long periods of time. We can equate this experience of waiting with what the children of Israel must have felt as they experienced many delays and detours traveling to their promise land called Canaan.

In our travels, we tend to make the journey longer and hazardous than it has to be. The flight from Egypt by the children of Israel, according to the Bible in Numbers chapter 14, took over forty years. The trip should have taken a shorter time, but because of their murmuring and complaining, the trip took longer.

When we are in a rush to get to our destination or plotted course, we are slowed down by various breakdowns, detours, wrecks, and mishaps. Trip preparations and precautions should be made before making any journey.

The Israelites met with many hardships along their journey which they were not prepared to handle. Though they were met with lack of food, water, and under constant attack from enemies, their needs were met on every hand by their God!

When we are met during our travels and we are temporarily stopped and trouble occurs, are our needs being met? Are we putting our hopes and dreams in sources that will be a disappointment to us?

As we are blocked in from the right to the left, behind us and in front of us, we get the feeling of being trapped. The Israelites must have felt the same feeling of being trapped, with their backs to the Red Sea and their enemies bearing down on them. How often do we feel there is no escape? Whatever direction we seek comfort and safety in, we find none!

The story of the Israelite goes on to say, though the enemies were upon them, the God of the Israelites opened the Red Sea and they were able to escape across the sea on dry land. Fortunately for the Israelites, they had a protective and loving God to meet their every need. What about us and the people around us? Where do we go when we feel trapped and our backs are up against the wall?

The world sometimes offers quick fixes to our trapped feelings, but in reality, we are still trapped and destitute after these fixes have escaped us! We all need a safe haven; one not life-threatening.

The story of the Israelites tells of the endless journey they traveled following a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night to direct their journey. Knocking on the wrong doors, not seeking help, and not being able to ask for the right directions, what will become of us? Will we be stalled outside of our promised land, never to enjoy the fruits of our labor?

When we think about where we are going in life, who will guide us? If we don’t have our directions straight, will we be stalled indefinitely? Will we come under constant attacks by our fears and other forces which seek to destroy us?

We must journey through life equipped with the knowledge that the same God that took care of the Israelites is the God we need to seek and pledge our minds and souls to! The God of the Israelites met their needs daily for forty years, why do we waver and get a weary feeling that all hope is gone? Through Christ there is a way out. For centuries, the Lord Jesus has been that open door, that escape route we are in search of. He is closer than any relative or friend we could ever have. All we need to do is to seek him! If we seek knowledge of him, surely he will reveal himself to us, as we journey to our promised land!

The Race of Life

How can we run the race of life if we are heavily laden with burdens and our feet are chained with hardships and trials? To win any race, we must be equipped with certain features to be able to compete and win!

First, we need the proper attire. If we are running in warm weather, the attire will be light in weight. Running in the colder weather, we suit up in heavier clothing. Since we are challenged by others, we want to make sure we have properly outfitted ourselves for the approaching race.

Secondly, we form a strategy to overtake our opponents. We can’t formulate a concrete plan if we are pondering yesterday’s mistakes and mishaps. Our momentum will surely be broken if we focus on all the wrong avenues we have taken which led to unnecessary pain, if only we had maintained the course we were to be on. Focusing on all that might have been, we will miss the starting whistle to begin the race.

Thirdly, how fit are we to run this race we call life? Are we suffering from laziness and undesirable traits? Are we afraid of trying to overcome the trials of life?

Some of the major hindrances from winning the race of life are found within ourselves. When we see people speeding up and passing us in the race of life, are we quick to give up or do we continue to forge our way?

When running any race, we need to run with patience and endurance. We have to have a certain pattern as we run the race. We must either pace ourselves, sprint, and on occasion, jog our way through life.

Tiredness is a jogger’s worst enemy while running. We all need the proper rest so we won’t be plagued by tiredness and sluggishness as we strive to win this race. With time and patience on our side, surely we will win the race of life, setting those things behind us that will prove to be hindrances and distractions.

We all are challenged on every side with some type of adversity, but we must remain focused, enduring every trial, and the thing we call patience will help us endure. Run the race with patience, being reassured that the victory will be yours! Continue to forge ahead, no matter the obstacles! The winner in any race is the one that holds on, never giving up, no matter how it looks or how tired one gets. Winning the race will be determined by how much you want to win. Anyone giving up before you try will never realize what’s on the other side of the finish line of life!

Life Has Many Steps

We must count the cost of what it will take

To win a battle before we jump into the battle!

When we come to ourselves and reason all of our problems

Out with ourselves, we get the assurance that everything is

Going to be alright, no matter how the circumstances appear.

We must step out and continue to press our way, never looking

Back. The only reason we look back is to learn from previous

Circumstances so we don’t repeat obvious mistakes.

When we feel we are not worthy because of past mistakes, we must

assure ourselves we are worthy. We must encourage ourselves

when no one else will do so!

Never forgetting the outward appearance has nothing to do with

What’s inside of a person.

We must never feel we are going through life alone and heavily

weighted down with problems. We are never alone!

Because our mind-set is very low, as well as our self-esteem, at

Times we can’t see our way because we are down in our spirits.

We need to look up. Sometimes the correct path lies in front of

Us. All we need to do is go down that right path.

The storms that seek to destroy us, the storms that are ever raging

Are the same storms or situations that take us to a higher level in

Victory.

When we disconnect ourselves from family and loved ones, we are

Seeking loneliness and unfamiliar companions. Unfamiliar people

And situations bring out different character personality

Changes! Sometimes we have to experience some life situations that

Give us a shock treatment and shake our very foundation as to

What is wrong or right.

When we try to run away from our fears, fear has a way not only of

Reaching back in our past but stretching into the future to

Find things to intimidate us with. Fear places us in positions where

We never achieve or realize our goals.

We must have a purpose in every step we take in life!

Sometimes during these steps we only see harmful things for our

Lives, but we must be able to look beyond the rough times to a

Better tomorrow!

Once we take our eyes off of our destination, we become easily beset

By different fears.

When we tend to wrestle with life, never giving in, never letting

Go, being persistent, we strengthen our determination to succeed.

When the winds of life blows us to and fro, the gust, heavy at

Times, we must constantly try to remain standing. When the dust

Clears and the clouds roll away, we are still standing; worn and torn

But still standing!

Storms usually uproot and tear everything into pieces that only

Time can put back together again, so will the pieces of our Lives be

put back together again? Yes with time.

The difficult lessons we learn through life has enabled us to forge

Forward! Usually, there are no shortcuts through life that we can

Take to avoid difficulties.

Because of the intensity of life circumstances, we feel like giving

Up and going back. We cannot go back. We have gone too far. We

Haven’t gotten through terrible ordeals just to start all over

Again!

When we go through any trials in life, they may give us

Discomfort for that period of time, but we go through learning

Every step of the way.

To know where we are, we must know the season we are in. We must

Be observant and have a focused mind-set. Confusion comes in during

All seasons of our lives and we are left puzzled and bewildered,

With no direction.

Life has many steps. When we travel through each step, there are

Lessons and training we must undergo to survive life’s ever-

changing stages.

In the Midnight Hour

At a certain time in our lives after we have experienced many periods of trouble and turbulence, we come into a revelation knowledge with age and wisdom as to what our purpose and destiny is in life!

Nothing comes overnight. All of the trials we experience in life are learning tools. Any lessons that are repeated are done until we get it right. We can’t move forward if we constantly make minor mistakes. We should have learned from years past!

We should never forget circumstances after and before our storms. We should be careful and alert! Approaching storms appear to have great intensity, like a hurricane effect, before the onset. But out of all of this turbulence, there will be good that prevails. Perhaps the only good that will come is that we are still left standing and able to make a new start! The foundation of our lives are shaken up when troubles and adversities overtake us! The chains that hold us in bondage are loosened and we undergo different transitions in our lives.

The Bible tells a story about Paul and Silas who were prophets. In Acts chapter 16, we find Paul and Silas imprisoned. Though imprisoned, they were still able to praise and worship their God. During their darkest period, they continued to pray. The story goes on to say that one night while Paul and Silas were praying during the midnight hour, there was a great earthquake. Everything was shaken until the doors to the jail were opened and the chains that bound both men were loosed.

We, too, are bound daily with different trials, but that doesn’t mean those things that has us bound will never be resolved. Perhaps those circumstances that has one bound may not instantly be loosened. But with time, all things are possible.

We feel