What Type of FRUIT am I bearing?

This past week in my study time I came to Matthew 12:33 where Jesus talks about bearing fruit.

33 “A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad.

It's no secret the bad fruit is a big reason I left the Church of Legalism.  I didn't see much good fruit being produced.  I saw negativity, scandals,  anger, bitterness, dysfunctional people, dysfunctional families, no miracles, and little hope.

As a  matter of fact, I think that's a big reason people are leaving churches in general.

There's not much fruit being produced.  Sure, there is fun and programs but what about the FRUIT. Where are the thriving families, the impact on this dark world around us, and concern about the world's oppressed people.

Many churches are producing bad fruit of hypocrisy with scandals and selfish greed and people are leaving that behind.

But what about where it comes to my own personal journey:  What type of fruit am I producing?

Here are the fruits that I am intentionally hoping to produce in my life.

Obedience

One of the fruits that I hope that I bear is obedience.  Even when I don't get what God is doing and it seems like the doors have closed, I want to still be obedient to what I know God has called me to do.

I continue to tell myself:  God is doing something.

Even when I don't get it, when it looks pointless, and I start to get discouraged I want to remain obedient to God because I don't believe just my life depends on it.  I believe other people also depend it.   When God first told me to pray for a husband who is in nowhere in sight, I figured it would be SHOWTIME in NO TIME and we are no closer than we were 3 years ago

Or Are We?

Even in September of 2015 when I was getting overwhelmed with this urgency to pray intense prayers for this cat because God said he was in real trouble  Well where was he?  Couldn't we at least get some kind of preview?  Let me know what I'm praying for!

Here's what I said then: 

Just a Note on the Husband Thing

No I am not married nor has anyone appeared but I just wanted to include this.  God has been imprinting on my heart that this man is in a place of darkness and I've been praying for him to give his life back to God so that he can go from death to life.  One day he will read this and KNOW that it was no accident that when he heard the voice that called him forth from the grave that was his life.

I've also been praying against cheap floozies...since that is a major  distraction and a big cause of the downfall.  I thought about deleting this section but it all fits somehow.  Enough is Enough.  Let's get back to the original intent of GREATNESS.  The devil can go back to Hell.

So I hope wherever he is that he has given his life back to the Lord and that the Lord has shown him immense grace and mercy. Time to move forward.

I also hope he has let go of the cheap floozies.  They were never really in it for the right reasons in the first place.  Good Riddance.  It may be hurtful and painful but cheer up buttercup, God has something much better in store for you (ME!)

Devil can go back to Hell in Jesus' name.  You aren't winning this.

Faithfulness/Patience

I hope that I am bearing the fruit of faithfulness and patience.

You know it's easy to cling to a vision or a dream when you see progress and stuff happening.  It's not so easy to remain to faithful to a vision or a dream where NOTHING appears to be happening.  Now I am on record as saying that I believe SOMETHING is happening on that other side of the mountain. I can't see it so I have to remain faithful and patient until God is ready to reveal it.

I'm not very patient at all.  I like things to happen yesterday and I like to know HOW hey were going to happen yesterday.

This whole journey thus far has been an excellent lesson in faithfulness and patience.  I refuse to give up because I believe it will all be worth it in the end.  I have FAITH that it will all be worth it in the end.  If I didn't have any faith, then I would have BEEN quit because I have little to no results for all of my believing so far.

Hope

Part of the reason I'm chronicling this journey is because I want to inspire other women to have HOPE.  I grew up without seeing many stories of HOPE and FAITH.  I think if I can share my story of God's Faithfulness and provision it will give hope to others. 

 If you don't have hope, then you will give up.  Many women in church have given up because they have no hope.  They look around and it all looks so hopeless.

Well I am here to say something different.

Love

1 Corinthians 13:3

3 Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.

Isn't that what this is all about?  LOVE!  I hope to cultivate the fruit of Love.  That was Jesus' teaching in a nutshell and yet we ignore this.  We ignore it in church, we ignore it with our families, and we ignore it with our neighbors.

The church I attended growing up was not very loving and neither were the people in it and the damaged children and families was proof of this.

I don't want my husband and children to ever feel like that so I want to be intentional about cultivating the fruit of LOVE.  I want that to come through in all areas of my life including professionally.

Intentional Fruit Bearing

I believe we have to be intentional.  We can't just hope and pray we do these things. 

We hope, pray, and take action to make these things happen.  Only action produces results.

Here's to much fruit bearing!  I EXPECT GOD TO DO SOMETHING!