Harvesting Abundance: How to Recognize God's Blessings and Learn from Success

Hello friend,

Wherever you may be in the world, I am so glad you have chosen to spend a little time with me today. 

Today we’re looking at the beauty, the progress, the small victories that prove God has been working in your garden all along because success leaves clues. If we slow down long enough to notice them, we can plant with even more intention in the next season. 

It is so important for us to notice and to count our blessings.

Psalm 126:3

“The Lord has done great things for us. We are glad.”

How do we get to that attitude?

Well, before you rush into what’s next, I want you to pause.

Deep breath here friend, and picture your garden.

If this year were a garden, what would yours look like?

In the last entry, we looked at the gaps and failures and learned from them, but today, I want you to picture the blossoms. The fruit. The massive amounts of pumpkins you’re cutting and bringing into your farmers market. 

Grab a journal and reflect on these questions:

What went right this year?

Where did you see growth even if it was small?

What rhythms helped you feel grounded?

What relationships brought you life?

We so easily overlook what’s thriving because we’re busy fixing what’s not. Oftentimes when we’re in the hard or lack seasons, we’re thinking “AWGHCK! I wish I could just get this to go! I wish I could get this to work!” and we don’t realize that we are fixated on what’s not working. So much so that we overlook and forget about what IS working. And if what’s not working WAS working, would we even notice it? 

I find that a bit ironic.

But the solution is to be slow. Slow down. 

So take a moment and give thanks for the areas of success. Growth doesn’t happen by accident. The thing that flourished, they did so for a reason. 

So write down your blessings. Identify and name your victories. Name them one by one. 

This is your harvest of abundance. The evidence of God’s faithfulness and your perseverance.

Galatians 6:9 

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up.”

And James 1:17

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights.”

Every bit of growth you’ve seen is a gift. A sign that even when you didn’t notice it, God was nurturing your soil. You can learn as much from your wins as you can from your pain. But so often, we’re so focused on the end goal, the BIG ONE, that we forget to celebrate the small ones along the way. Maybe you, like me, have the bad habit of not even celebrating the big wins because we’re off to “what’s next”. Oh, I don’t have time to celebrate, that would be selfish. That would be arrogant”. Do you relate?

You’re missing out on a lot by doing that.

So when something grows, ask yourself why.

What were the conditions that helped it thrive?

Start at the flower and work your way down.

Were the leaves healthy? 

Was the stalk strong?

Was it because the roots were strong?

Was it because the roots were large and deep?

Well why that?

Was it because they were in the right kind of soil?

Did it have the right amount of runoff or nutrients?

Was it because it got the right amount of sun or shade?

Do you see what I mean? When you take time to evaluate what’s working, well, then you can do more of that.

So what were the conditions that helped it thrive? What habits, boundaries, or mindset shifts supported that growth? 

Maybe you started setting aside quiet times in the morning and felt more peace (if you need more of that, I've got you. Quiet time is here, and Peace practice is here.)

Maybe you began saying No to things that drained you and noticed you had more energy.

Maybe you trusted God in a new way or deeper way and saw His provision show up unexpectedly.

Those aren’t random happy little accidents. They’re clues.

Clues about what nourishes you. What aligns with your values, strengths, and talents. God is inviting you to cultivate more of that.

John 15:4-5

“Abide in me, and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine. Neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit.”

Success isn’t about striving harder. It’s about abiding deeper. When you’re connected to the vine, growth happens naturally. Gratitude is one of the most powerful fertilizers in our spiritual garden. When we acknowledge the good, not just mentally, but emotionally, we strengthen our roots of faith.

It’s like this:

When your cup, your little teacup, of whatever it is that your life holds, has been overflowing, and you’re frantically trying to mop up the mess, contain what’s in the cup, when you finally learn to pour in just the right amount, and then you succeed in walking around your life without spilling, well. That’s a success!

Imagine you’re a little kid and you’ve finally figured out how to walk from the kitchen to the dining table without spilling your drink. How excited do you feel? Well, what happens from that feeling of excitement and pride? You get more confidence don’t you? You get more confident that you can do it again. That you can do it better, or faster. 

Maybe you can walk a little bit faster, a little bit smoother. I have found that it often means that when you stop to notice, then Hey! I did that! I finally got it! I finally managed my container! I got just the right amount of stuff inside! Then that is the sign that you are ready for a bigger cup.

You are ready to trade the teacup for a mason jar. Because now you’ve figured it out, you’re a little bit stronger. You’ve now stretched your capacity to hold a little more. 

So if we go back to the gardening metaphor, it’s like a little plant that starts out with small roots, and those small roots send up a small shoot. But hey look! Growth! Then that small shoot gets more light, more nourishment, so now its roots start to stretch a little further. They reach down a little deeper. Now, that plant is anchored deeper in the soil, pulling up more nutrients and anchoring itself even more, so that when a big storm comes along, or when someone leaves the hose on full blast, and it causes a flood in the backyard, that little seedling is not going to be washed away. It will stand firm.

This is what happens when we stop to notice. 

When we acknowledge where we are, and take it in, we get stronger.

It’s not about ignoring what’s hard, it’s about saying “even here, God has been faithful. Even now, growth is happening.” Sometimes when we’re focused on what’s hard or what’s not bearing fruit, like if I say to my grapevine, “Aw man, would you just grow a little faster? Come on God! How come you didn’t give me any grapes this year? I just wanted some grapes this year.” 

In essence, you are asking, “Where are you God?” 

Well, when I stopped mourning my desolate grapevine, and walked over to my vegetable patch and saw bright little tomatoes all over my tomato vines crying out, “Here I am. I am right here.” 

Those tomatoes, I’m telling you, are so abundant. It’s a great harvest! But it’s tomatoes, not grapes. In this I can say, “Here, God has been faithful. Even now, growth is happening.”

1 Thess. 5:18

“Give thanks in all circumstances. For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

 

In all circumstances. 

That means, if you are trying to grow grapes, and you're not seeing any grapes, and you have an abundance of tomatoes, GIVE THANKS FOR THE TOMATOES!

A lightbulb moment for me last week was this: Why is giving thanks in all circumstances the will of God in Christ Jesus?

I thought the will of God was Salvation, Mercy, Forgiveness, the big stuff.

How is giving thanks the will of God?

How do you work out salvation through thanksgiving?

When you’re busy giving thanks, and you’re excited and grateful. Happy. What kind of energy do you feel?

Do you feel sluggish, or depressed? 

NO! 

You feel energetic, upbeat. When you are counting your blessings and giving gratitude, feel in your body what kind of energy are you bringing to the table? If you're walking through life with that energy, imagine, are you going to be able to make it through the storms? Yes. You are better equipped, in fact, to handle the storms, than if you are focused on what’s not working. If you're focused on what’s not working all the time, how do you think you will handle the storm, the fiery trial? 

…. 

You're not.

Giving thanks is the key to accomplishing the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. It is the KEY.

Col. 2:6-7

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him. Rooted and built up in him, abounding in thanksgiving.” Being rooted and growing or built up in him, is connected to the concept of being abundant in thanksgiving. So here’s the science:

The more we practice noticing the fruit, the more we see the wildflowers blooming in the harsh conditions of a roadside, along our journey. The more our hearts align with the rhythm of abundance. It will fall into a rhythm of noticing more. 

When we notice more, it will start wiring our brain to see more. Gratitude trains our eyes to see possibility. Thankfulness trains our brains to see opportunity. When we’re looking at the world through the lens of possibility and opportunity, that sets us up for healthy growth in the next season. That is what will set you up for success. 

So as you reflect, ask yourself:

What went well this year?

What patterns or rhythms supported your growth?

How can you nurture those same conditions going forward?

Maybe this looks like continuing your journaling practice. 

Maybe it’s protecting your rest. 

Maybe it’s showing up more in your community. 

Maybe it’s praying more. 

Maybe it’s doing more of the creative outlet you’re a genius at, and serving others with it. Whatever made you feel most alive. 

This is how we carry our wisdom into the next season.

When we practice gratitude, we see the positive things in life, those will drive the thoughts that we think about circumstances and possibilities. Those thoughts drive our feelings. If those thoughts are good thoughts, then you will have a positive, helpful feeling. When you’re feeling energized and pumped up, or at the very least, peaceful because you see the good in something, then what kind of actions are you going to take? You’re going to get up, you’re going to do something, you’re going to do more, you’re going to keep going, you’re going to keep putting one foot in front of the other, and you’re going to do it with a smile on your face. 

I was just talking to my daughter who was helping me with my market yesterday. She worked so hard for a 6 year old. And she did it with a happy attitude! And I told her, “You do that your whole life, and it will take you so far. You will make so many friends if you show up like that every day. And you’ll have people that will take care of you when you need it because of the person you are and the way you approach life.”

The result is, even those who are standing on the sidelines, they will notice. And they will ask, “why are you smiling about your situation? How are you doing this? How do you keep going when your life is so hard or challenging? How do you do it all when you have so much on your plate?” 

And THEN 

That’s when we get to give the answer for the reason of the hope that is within us.

It’s so beautiful how it works. 

This is how we carry our wisdom into the next season. It doesn’t stay in our brains. It’s not just practical advice. This is the wisdom of living every day life, and this is how you do it. 

We don’t start from scratch. As you iterate through life, you will go in cycles, but you start each cycle from the strengths of the last. 

Proverbs 16:3

“Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”

Phill. 1:6

“He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ,”

You can trust that the same God who began this growth in you will keep watering it.

Friend, you’ve grown more than you think. And even if your harvest looks smaller than you hoped, remember. The fruit you DO have, is full of seeds for the future. When you take time to celebrate, give thanks, and learn from what worked, you aren’t just ending a season, you’re prepping the soil for what’s next. You’re expanding your root ball. Anchoring yourself deeper and wider. So you can do more, hold more, more of everything. And that’s the beauty, you can hold more life. All of it, the dark and the light. Living that way is beautiful.

If you're ready to take your reflection deeper and build a life that is intentional and aligned with who God created you to be, this is your invitation to the Sonshine Academy, a 12-week experience that will help you cultivate your peace, purpose, & confidence in every area of your life. It’s a partnership that will pull you out of overwhelm, exhaustion, and despair, and create the joy and desire to greet each day with a smile on your face, and bandwidth in your mind to hold your life.

One last verse:

John 15:8 

“By this my father is glorified. That you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”

Stay planted in purpose, and walk in the Son.

Joyfully,

Aurie