WHERE FRUIT BEGINS
I believe with everything that is in me that fruit begins with each one of us. It begins with a decision, “I want to bear fruit. I want to honor Jesus. I want to walk in his ways. And I will do it no matter what. No matter what life throws at me. No matter what struggles I face. No matter what disease afflicts me or my loved ones. No matter how much success I have financially or how miserably I fail. I will not give up in this one area. So Lord, I give you my heart. I give you my very life. I give you my all.”
When we can pray like that, this is a grand start. Sure there will be weeds to pull out. Sure there will be stones to unearth and haul away sometimes leaving at least temporarily a big hole. Sometimes we will need to dig out those tree stumps in the fields of our lives rather than plow around if we are to bear a bountiful harvest. Sometimes the fields of our neighbors may seem like a rock garden or overrun with debris but if we remember to focus on our own field, we will see that we have more than enough to do rather than fix what we think is wrong with everyone else.
There is a saying, “The grass always looks greener on the other side.” But you know what? I think, “The weeds always look taller in someone else’s yard.” Take responsibility for your own life first. Clear out the log of your own eye. Be the type of fertile soil that Jesus wants you to be so that he (not you) can produce the bountiful crop.