By Rick Kraft

Who you are today is no accident. Where you are today is no accident. You are who you are and where you are because of choices you have made. It is the Law of the Harvest. You will not find the Law of the Harvest written into our federal laws. You will not find the Law of the Harvest written into our state or city laws. Yet the Law of the Harvest governs each of us.

It is the law addressed in the Bible in Galatians 6:7 where Paul wrote, A man reaps what he sows. It is the principle that if you plant an oak seed, you get an oak tree. If you plant a dandelion seed, you get a weed. This law applies not only positively, but also negatively.

You have got to be careful what you sow because a single seed doesnt bring just a single result, it usually brings a multiple harvest. We reap what we sow. Isnt that what our lives are all about, reaping and sowing?

You see, actions bring consequences. We are each the CEO of our own life. Our lives are a series of choices. We choose what we wear. We choose what we eat. We choose whether or not we read the newspaper. We choose to be involved in our community. We choose how much time we spend with our family.

We choose what we do with our free time. We choose whether or not we even have free time. Life is lived one choice at a time. The choices we each make when compiled together make up who we are. It is the Law of the Harvest.

In our early years, our life is determined mainly by our conditions. A baby does not choose his or her family. A young child does not choose what type of home environment he or she lives in. But as age increases, so do a persons options. Uncontrolled conditions become controllable choices.

Choices become habits. Habits become character. Character becomes destiny. But it all goes back to individual choices we make and what we choose to sow. William Jennings Bryan said, Destiny is no matter of chance. It is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.

George Bernard Shaw once stated, People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I dont believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they cant find them, make them. It is the Law of the Harvest.

I often time hear people complain that their life is in a rut. There is a sign up in Canada at the entry of an open field with undeveloped roads leading off in different directions. The sign reads, Choose your rut carefully. You will be in it for the next 20 miles. Isnt life that way sometimes? You look back and say to yourself, How did I get here? Some of us chose our paths many years ago. Regardless of the past, it is not too late to make a change if we truly desire one.

If your life is monotonous, it is you, not the world, that is boring. We live in a great and exciting world! How much we choose to give or receive in this world determines what our own independent experience with life is. It is the Law of the Harvest.

What really bothers me are people who sit back and complain and gripe because something is not going their way when a simple change on their behalf would cure the problem.

Let me encourage you to do a self-assessment. Step back outside of yourself and take a global look at your life. Do you like what you see? What are you sowing? What are you reaping? If you keep doing what you are doing, you will keep getting what you are getting. It is the Law of the Harvest.

If you like what you are getting, be thankful and dont change a thing! If you dont like what you are getting, by all means make changes. Change something, change anything. But make a change in the choices that you make.

For example, if you do not get satisfaction out of going to work each day, first try to change your attitude. If that doesnt work, maybe you need to change your job or even your occupation. Life is too short for it to not be enjoyed.

We need to be proactive and not reactive. As Stephen Covey wrote, Being proactive is more than taking initiative. It is recognizing that we are responsible for our own choices and have the freedom to choose based on principles and values rather than on moods or conditions. Proactive people are agents of change and choose not to be victims, to be reactive, or to blame others.

Whatever you do, dont bring others down by your failure to make changes that are within your power. If you are unhappy in your job, it not only causes added stress in your life, it also drags down those around you and creates stress in their lives. A change results in a step up for both you and those around you.

My challenge to you is to recognize you are not where you are today by accident. You made an appointment to be where you are. Yet it is not too late to change your direction.

It is my hope that you make good choices and that you sow into each choice the actions to allow you to reap the harvest that comes from planting proper seeds.

May you make a difference and add value in the lives of others you interact with. And may you plant seeds for shade trees you may never be able to enjoy.

We each reap what we sow. It is the Law of the Harvest.

Just a thought

Rick Kraft, a South Pasadena High School graduate, is a syndicated columnist, a motivational speaker, a published author, and an attorney. To submit comments, contributions, or ideas, e-mail to rkraft@kraftlawfirm.org.

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