Jerusalem Israel
Don't we all want to be people who cultivate fruit in our lives and those around us? How do we do that?
Let me begin by discussing a few sure ways that don't produce good fruit:
1- Speak unkind words about others. -You may say "Tambo, but I'm right about what I am saying about that person!" First of all I would say "Who cares. Because we are wrong when we speak evil of others. We are wrong when we turn others against someone. Not to mention the idea that, what if your or my opinion, what IF our opinions, I say again, is it possible our opinion is actually wrong anyway?"😭 We have ALL done this. But we can ALL stop also. And when we have started again. We can stop again. 😊
2- Focus on and trying to fix others. -Again, which of us have not tried doing this from time to time.
3- Lack Faith, Loose Hope, and Abandon Love. -Here we are again falling short.
BUT, what makes the difference between people who bring a lot of fruit and impact this world with the beauty of all God wants us to bring into this world, is what we own up to where we have failed, and then look to Our Father to empower us to be the people HE has called us to be.
If we want to be humans that at the end of our lives we look back, and others look back at our lives as people that cultivated Fruit, cultivated the JOY of the Lord in this world, then let's begin moving forward in the following things:
A- Speak words of kindness. It's actually not hard to pick people apart. Once someone decides to do that, they will have no problem finding fault with ANYONE because every one of us fall short. Maybe that's why the Bible talks so much about believing the best. About the power of words. About forgiveness. About LOVE being the most important thing.
Even now in our heads we might be justifying why we speak unkind words in our particular situations, but lets be so courageous that we pray "Lord, first show me who I am speaking against and where am I speaking unkind word. Father is there a better way to accomplish positive outcome and accomplish what YOU want me to do and be. God, is my words causing others to LOVE other people more ... or less? And now Father thank you for forgiving me and help me to bring beautiful fruit."
B- Pray that we see OUR blind spots. Pray for wisdom on how to better ourselves in order to impact the world drawing people to God's loving kindness. Get excited about our great and high calling God has ordained for us personally. We can be people who bring heaven on earth. We can be people who are helpers of others joy. When we see where others might be falling short (because throughout life, this will always be the case) in some of their abilities, let's see how in a positive way we can help pick up the slack... help accomplish the over all goal, and pray for them instead of coming down on them in our own heads or to others. We can trust God will help them in their shortcoming just like he will help us in our shortcomings.
C- Have Faith in our Loving God. That His ways are right and true and all things beautiful. Have Hope in the "God of Hope," = a belief that our faithful God of the past will be our faithful God in the future. And finally let's Love God and love others.
As we begin more and more rejecting and turning away from the actions of 1-3, and begin incorporating A-C... our lives will surely end up in a much more glorious place and we will have truly been the kind of human that impacts this world being the lights that we are called to be.
Root me on in these things as I root you on my friends!
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control: against such things there is no law.”