SHELBY TOWNSHIP – When farmers harvest wheat they must perform a process of sifting. First, they must thresh the wheat. The old-fashioned form of threshing was to place the wheat on the concrete or stone ground and crush it hard enough so it would separate the grain from the stalks. The farmers would then have to undertake the process of winnowing. In this part of the process, the farmers would throw the mixture into the air and the wind would blow the chaff away where only the heavy, edible grain would remain.
There are times in our lives where we will endure a sifting season. We may feel as if we are being crushed on all sides. These seasons of our lives are hard, painful, and agonizing. Have you ever been there? Maybe you are there now.
For me, I am coming out of a season of sifting. During this season, God led me to the passage in Luke when Jesus was participating in the Last Supper with the disciples.
Jesus says to Simon:
“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
Luke 22:31-32 (NIV)
As soon as I read this passage in Luke, I knew it was speaking directly to me. I was in a sifting season. In these verses God showed me three very important things that I needed in that season.
Three truths to hold onto when you are in a sifting season:
1. Jesus allows the sifting season.
“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat….”
We see in this verse that Satan has asked Jesus to sift Simon. When I feel like I am going through spiritual warfare, I can feel the heaviness of the battle and begin to feel defeated and afraid. God made it very clear that whatever warfare or “sifting” we experience in our lives, it first goes through Jesus. Our God is sovereign, which means everything is under His control. Any sifting we go through in our lives is meant to separate our chaff from our wheat so that He can get rid of any impurities that we still have.
2. Jesus prays for us.
“… But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail.”
Jesus is praying for us. He never loses sight of us, and is always interceding to the Father on our behalf. During my sifting season, God sent three people in the span of six weeks (who didn’t know my situation) to tell me I had been in their dreams and that they felt led to pray for me. During these six weeks, I was at the height of my threshing.
Then a few months later, when I was in what felt like a second round of threshing, a fourth person contacted me. She told me that I had been in her dreams for a few nights in a row and that she didn’t know what was going on, but that she was praying for me. When these four people reached out to me, I felt seen and heard by God. I know God hears my prayers, but He showed me in such a powerful way that He was using His people to intercede on my behalf.
3. Jesus sees the end of the process.
“And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
I love this part of this passage where Jesus states, “when you have turned back.” He knew that Simon would make it through this season and when he did, he would be stronger and ready to lead the other disciples. Simon was going to learn some very important things that would prepare him for his calling. He would not be the same person on the other side of the sifting.
Just as Simon grew and changed during his sifting season, I can say the same for myself. I have been able to thank God for my sifting season, because if it wasn’t for that season I wouldn’t be where I am today. Truth is, we wouldn’t choose a sifting season, but God knows exactly what we need to continue to mold us into the person he created us to be.
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
James 1:2-4 (NIV)
Next time you go through a sifting season, remember to thank God for loving you
so much that he wants to separate the grain from the chaff in your life.
It isn’t easy, but it is necessary.
The hard times will make you stronger if you do not give up!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Karen is married to Scott Blanchard, pastor of Lakepointe Church, and moved from Florida to Michigan in the summer of 2009 to plant Lakepointe Church in Shelby Township. She enjoys mentoring and discipling women and also leads women’s life groups through her church. She is passionate about helping women find their purpose in who God created them to be. She is on staff at Lakepointe Church and loves being part of what God is doing in the Metro Detroit area!