About a week ago, people from around the world grappled with the loss of a phenomenal American actor by the name of Chadwick Boseman. Over the years, Boseman played leading roles in popular films like: Black Panther, Marshall, 21 Bridges, Get On Up, 42, etc. Boseman was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer in 2016 and battled with it over the years as it progressed to stage 4. While Boseman went through countless surgeries and chemotherapy treatments behind closed doors, he produced some of his most remarkable work for the world to see through film. One of the things that I admired about Boseman was that he did not publicize or complain about his illness, he kept it known only amongst a few close people and private from the rest of the world as he kept moving in purpose and creating a legacy.
There is something about the way that Boseman navigated throughout the world that reminded me of divinity but I couldn’t quite put my finger on why or how until last Sunday when I read my bible. I came across the story of Gideon in Judges and although I had read about Gideon before, there was something that stuck out to me and resonated with my spirit like never before, Judges 6:11-12 NIV. It reads, “11 The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. 12 When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”
There is something about the way that Boseman navigated throughout the world that reminded me of divinity but I couldn’t quite put my finger on why or how until last Sunday when I read my bible. I came across the story of Gideon in Judges and although I had read about Gideon before, there was something that stuck out to me and resonated with my spirit like never before, Judges 6:11-12 NIV. It reads, “11 The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. 12 When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”
To those of you who may be unfamiliar with what threshing wheat is, it’s the removal or separating of the good parts of the wheat from the outer shell known as the chaff. The process of threshing wheat can be done in multiple ways but one of the more difficult ways to thresh wheat is by a person taking a stalk of wheat in their hands and beating it on the floor. Threshing wheat is typically done in a large area on what is called a threshing floor which provides an open concrete or hard surface to be able to beat the wheat on. Once the wheat is successfully removed from the chaff the person would toss the beaten wheat into the air so that the wind could blow away the lighter chaff. If Gideon would have threshed his wheat on a threshing floor which would have been a more ideal situation, he would have been an easy target for the Midanites to come and ruin his crops since they were invading his land at the time.
Although Gideon was unable to thresh wheat on a threshing floor, similar to Boseman, he made an executive decision to thresh wheat in a winepress. A winepress was a small pit hidden from the view of others that would not be suspected as a place to find someone’s crops, it represents an unfavorable condition that makes it more difficult for a person to produce. As we have now entered into the month of September and we’re coming up on the Labor Day Holiday tomorrow, I believe that God wants you to thresh wheat in your winepress this month. That means that this month you have to stop publicizing everything and keep certain things private while you build, create, or prepare to give birth to something new. It means that you have to figure out how to keep propelling through unideal circumstances to produce and walk in purpose. Threshing wheat in your winepress means that you have to overcome the limitations of what your situation may present before you. Ecclesiastes 11:4 AMP reads, “He who watches the wind [waiting for all conditions to be perfect] will not sow [seed], and he who looks at the clouds will not reap [a harvest]”. God wants you to reap for the rest of this year but you cannot reap what you do not sow so you have to put, in, work.
Gideon and Chadwick Boseman didn’t wait for the perfect conditions to put in work and sow, they subdued their situations by taking action during a time that others would have deemed as an undesirable moment to move. Gideon didn’t have the opportunity to thresh wheat in the right place at the right time, but he refused to let his circumstances hold him back from producing. Instead, he privately threshed wheat in a winepress, a small pit that made it that much more difficult to thresh wheat yet it provided the seclusion he needed to secure protection and generate goods. From 2016 up until his death in 2020, Boseman didn’t act in films with perfect health, but instead with colon cancer, he persevered and acted in some of the most well known films. When God calls us to do something, He does not wait for our worldly standards to align with His will. Instead, He shows up on his time, choosing who many people in the world would deem as an unlikely person to be chosen, wanting us to navigate on His terms so that He may perform a great work. This month more than ever, we have got to thresh wheat in our winepress.
Gideon and Chadwick Boseman didn’t wait for the perfect conditions to put in work and sow, they subdued their situations by taking action during a time that others would have deemed as an undesirable moment to move. Gideon didn’t have the opportunity to thresh wheat in the right place at the right time, but he refused to let his circumstances hold him back from producing. Instead, he privately threshed wheat in a winepress, a small pit that made it that much more difficult to thresh wheat yet it provided the seclusion he needed to secure protection and generate goods. From 2016 up until his death in 2020, Boseman didn’t act in films with perfect health, but instead with colon cancer, he persevered and acted in some of the most well known films. When God calls us to do something, He does not wait for our worldly standards to align with His will. Instead, He shows up on his time, choosing who many people in the world would deem as an unlikely person to be chosen, wanting us to navigate on His terms so that He may perform a great work. This month more than ever, we have got to thresh wheat in our winepress.
We've got to thresh wheat in our winepress because like Chadwick Boseman we have to refuse to let our circumstances or the circumstances of this world define us. We've got to thresh wheat in our winepress because certain things are meant to be kept private while we’re creating for protection purposes. We've got to thresh wheat in our winepress because God has blessed us with unmerited favor in order to be able to thresh just so we can pour for others. In case you didn’t listen to the message that GOD gave at the beginning of this year, HE told us that we are the blueprint and that is a reminder that we've got to thresh wheat in our winepress because we’re the chosen ones that have been charged with the responsibility to keep threshing when no one else can or will. We've got to thresh wheat in our winepress because deep down within, we know that GOD will always win
We've got to thresh wheat in our winepress. That means we've got to choose to keep honoring God. We've got to choose to let go and keep it moving. We've got to choose to always trust God’s promises. We've got to choose to hold our tongues when we want to complain. We've got to choose to put in the work. We've got to choose to go the extra mile. We've got to choose to not just talk about it but be about it. We've got to choose to be in this world but not of this world. We've got to choose to make the right decision when the wrong one feels so enticing. We've got to choose when to properly filter out the noises in this world that could be detrimental to our purpose. We've got to choose to look past our worldly view in order to adopt a heavenly mindset. We've got to choose to keep chasing after JESUS when there are some days we may not feel like even getting up out of the bed. We’ve got to choose to keep producing content to encourage and inspire individuals when it feels like things are stagnant or there is a lack of reach. We've got to thresh wheat in our winepress because we recognize that in the threshing GOD is with us and as long as we keep threshing, the harvest is plentiful.
We've got to thresh wheat in our winepress. That means we've got to choose to keep honoring God. We've got to choose to let go and keep it moving. We've got to choose to always trust God’s promises. We've got to choose to hold our tongues when we want to complain. We've got to choose to put in the work. We've got to choose to go the extra mile. We've got to choose to not just talk about it but be about it. We've got to choose to be in this world but not of this world. We've got to choose to make the right decision when the wrong one feels so enticing. We've got to choose when to properly filter out the noises in this world that could be detrimental to our purpose. We've got to choose to look past our worldly view in order to adopt a heavenly mindset. We've got to choose to keep chasing after JESUS when there are some days we may not feel like even getting up out of the bed. We’ve got to choose to keep producing content to encourage and inspire individuals when it feels like things are stagnant or there is a lack of reach. We've got to thresh wheat in our winepress because we recognize that in the threshing GOD is with us and as long as we keep threshing, the harvest is plentiful.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
We magnify your glorious name today. Hallelujah to our King, who has blessed us with another month and covered us all throughout the year thus far. Thank you for being a mighty shield of protection, a provider, a keeper, a way maker, and a great steward over our lives. This month we come before you praying for the power to thresh wheat in our winepress throughout the month of September. Help us to stay focused and put in work this month while blessing us with the discernment to know what unfavorable circumstances need to be kept private during this season so that we may build, create, and give birth to the things you have designed us to produce successfully. Bless us with the wisdom that Elizabeth had in Luke 1:24 NIV when she became pregnant with John the Baptist and for five months remained in seclusion. Bless us with the wisdom to know when to ask for more wisdom like Solomon in 1 Kings 3:7 NIV. Continue to guide us throughout this month LORD so that we may excel and overcome the limitations of our situations. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
Scriptures to Feed Yourself & Reflect On:
Judges 6:1-12 NIV
Ecclesiastes 11:4 AMP
Luke 1:24 NIV
1 Kings 3:7 NIV
Heavenly Father,
We magnify your glorious name today. Hallelujah to our King, who has blessed us with another month and covered us all throughout the year thus far. Thank you for being a mighty shield of protection, a provider, a keeper, a way maker, and a great steward over our lives. This month we come before you praying for the power to thresh wheat in our winepress throughout the month of September. Help us to stay focused and put in work this month while blessing us with the discernment to know what unfavorable circumstances need to be kept private during this season so that we may build, create, and give birth to the things you have designed us to produce successfully. Bless us with the wisdom that Elizabeth had in Luke 1:24 NIV when she became pregnant with John the Baptist and for five months remained in seclusion. Bless us with the wisdom to know when to ask for more wisdom like Solomon in 1 Kings 3:7 NIV. Continue to guide us throughout this month LORD so that we may excel and overcome the limitations of our situations. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
Scriptures to Feed Yourself & Reflect On:
Judges 6:1-12 NIV
Ecclesiastes 11:4 AMP
Luke 1:24 NIV
1 Kings 3:7 NIV