Wrestling in Prayer for an Abundant Harvest
By Shannon Leibold
I come from wide-open spaces and barefoot summers and rows of corn taller than my head. Filling the role of the son he never had, I was my farmer-Dad’s shadow. In the spring, I stood on the back of the seed drill watching those little bean seeds fall into the earth as Dad drove the tractor up and down the fields. On summer evenings, I jumped in the old farm pick-up truck with him, rolled down the windows, and flew down the dusty lane to check the crops in the back ten acres. In the fall, I rode on the seat beside him and watched the golden grain tumble into the combine. Every year all that hard work paid off at harvest time.
One topic of conversation ruled our home as I was growing up: the weather. Farmers talk a lot about the weather. But ironically, they have very little control over the sun, wind and rain. Sometimes the crops wilted in the summer heat, desperate for the rain that rarely came. Other times muddy fields kept the combines out and the crops were in danger of being lost to the winter snow.
You see, we can plow and plant, till and tend, but we cannot produce a harvest. God is the one who causes the growth. He is sovereign over the harvest. “So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth” (1 Cor. 3:7).
I’m so mindful of this in my current season. Two months ago, I took a huge leap of faith into what I’m convinced is God’s purpose for my life. Abandoning all that is comfortable, I’m now in unfamiliar territory. Like my dad, I’m working around the clock to plow and plant something that I’m hoping will grow into an abundant harvest in the lives of others. I’m praying for sun and rain and the wind of the Spirit at all the right times. Only time will tell.
Are you in a similar season? Are you waiting on God to bring a fruitful harvest in your life? Here are seven things you can do while you wrestle with God in prayer for an abundant harvest:

1. Cultivate holy confidence and humble dependence on God.
As we prepare for a harvest, it’s our job to keep our hearts right before God. Holy confidence in who God is and humble dependence on Him keeps our motives pure and our eyes fixed on Jesus. Apart from Him we can do nothing.
2. Be faithful in the work but surrender the outcome.
The more we grasp our desired outcome, trying to control the results, the more exhausted and disappointed we will become. Faithfully working hard with open hands allows the Spirit to move and work. When we surrender the outcome, we are much more likely to be amazed at what God does in and through us.
3. Live in a way that constantly engages your faith.
Playing it safe does not leave room for the miraculous. When we step out of our comfort zone into the realm of faith, God shows up, and our faith grows.
4. Be courageous and disciplined to work like everything depends on you and pray like everything depends on God.
When speaking about the ministry God had called him to, the Apostle Paul said, “For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me” (Col. 1:29). Paul recognized both forces at play in his life. He was responsible for giving his all to the work God had called him to, yet he knew his work would be in vain if he did not pray like it all depended on God. He gave his all to both.
5. Repent of selfish ambition and ask God to fill you with holy ambition.
Selfish ambition – trying to make a name for yourself – is idolatry. It only leads to captivity and ruin. God simply will not share His glory with another. We are to be motivated by holy ambition for His kingdom and His glory.
6. Do not waver in unbelief regarding the character and promises of God.
What might happen if you and I dared to believe God is who He says He is and He can do what He says He can do? What if we believed everything the Bible says about the character and promises of God and began to act accordingly? Our unbelief is the only obstacle that is keeping us from enjoying the fullness of God’s provision, presence, and empowering grace.
7. Remember, the secret to a fruitful harvest is intimacy not productivity.
Regardless of how many items you check off your to-do list, you cannot guarantee a fruitful harvest in the kingdom of God. Grapes don’t strain and struggle to grow. They simply abide in the vine. We too, as we faithfully abide in Christ, will grow and produce an abundant harvest. The way forward is intimacy with Christ.
Prayer for an Abundant Harvest
Father God, we long for our lives to produce an abundant harvest. We want to be fruitful in Your kingdom for Your glory. But we cannot do this on our own. We commit now to working faithfully in what You’ve called us to do and cultivating holy confidence and humble dependence on You. Give us faith to believe that at just the right time, You will bring an abundant harvest. Amen.
4 Bible Verses for when you are wrestling with God for an abundant harvest
- 1 Corinthians 3:5-8: “What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor.”
- Colossians 1:29: “To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.“
- John 15:1-2: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.”
- Romans 4:16: “ Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. “
Meet the author
Shannon Leibold
Shannon Leibold believes the greatest story ever told is the one found on the pages of Scripture. Captivated by God’s grand narrative of relentless redemption, she spends most of her free time immersed in the Bible, both as a student and teacher and curriculum developer. She is passionate about helping women find their way around the Bible and inspiring them to develop a deep hunger for God through His Word. She makes a home with her husband Kris and two teenage children in Ontario, Canada. She’s the one frantically taking notes through every sermon, playing podcasts during every mundane task, and devouring every book that sparks her interest.