Stay Connected

Matthew 21:18-19 (The Message)

 Early the next morning Jesus was returning to the city. He was hungry. Seeing a lone fig tree alongside the road, he approached it anticipating a breakfast of figs. When he got to the tree, there was nothing but fig leaves. He said, “No more figs from this tree—ever!” The fig tree withered on the spot, a dry stick. 

 A few years ago I arrived to start work on a new construction project. As I was walking to the area that I would be working in, I saw from a distance an old work colleague from a previous job. 'Fancy seeing you here,' I said as I caught his line of sight. The only problem was that as soon as I engaged him in conversation, I realized that he actually wasn't my old work colleague! Even funnier than that was that we still had a conversation for a couple of minutes because I think he was too polite to ask me who the heck I was. 
 In the passage above, Jesus was walking down the road and his stomach was going mental for food. 'Oh good a fig tree,' exclaimed Jesus. As he approached licking his lips ready to get stuck into some good old 'fig-a-bix' for breakfast, he realized that even though the tree had lots of leaves, it had no fruit whatsoever! How frustrating when you need something but it's not there! Countless times I have gone to a coffee shop for a quick caffeine fix, only to find that they have just turned the machine off! Hello you're a coffee shop, don't be open if you can't serve the one thing that is in your shop title!
 The Bible talks about how as Christians we are called to bear 'spiritual fruit'. It's important that we know what this fruit looks like and how to grow it so that when people are hungry and in need of God, they can approach us knowing that they will not walk away still feeling hungry. In the scripture below, the author explains what fruit we can expect to produce when we live connected to God.

Galatians 5:22-23 (New Living Translation)

 'But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.'

Developing Fruit

 For the purpose of my analogy we are going to imagine we are back in the late 1980's when disposable cameras are as cool as 'Who framed Roger Rabbit' and Kylie Minogue. You have one of those cameras in your hand, so naturally you take a selfie but the frustrations of this stone age technology means that you can't check it out until some genius invents the digital camera in another decade. If I come up and ask to the see the picture you just took of yourself you will say that it is in the camera but you can't show me until it's been developed. The process of developing that photo will take place in a 'darkroom' using a special blank white piece of paper, eventually that paper will display the image of your quite disappointing selfie.
 Much in the same way, fruit is in us, we just need to give it time to develop, and the process in which fruit is developed is through the 'darkroom' of trials. In the book of James we are told that when we go through adversity, it is an opportunity for us to grow and that once we have walked through the trial we will come out the other side fully developed, mature and lacking nothing. Some of the best fruit you will produce in your life will come from the darkest, most difficult situations, but the image that will be developed when you come out the other side will be more Christ-like. People who attempt to produce this fruit by themselves are just growing the rotten fruit of religion. It is very important that we don't concentrate on trying to produce the fruit by ourselves, the results will be plastic and artificial. To bear the rich fruit that God desires in our lives we need to focus on staying connected to the rich vine of Jesus. 

Stay Connected

John 15:1-5 (New International Version)

"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. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me." 

 Recently at the park I have been able to introduce Frankie to the magic of a stick and it's multiple uses including, a walking stick, a spade, a boomerang (that doesn't come back), the list is endless! We currently have a collection of sticks outside our front door because Frankie is insistent that we don't leave them at the park (it's not like they grow on trees Daddy!) So aside from the fact that our house is becoming an ever increasing bush fire risk, it got me thinking about why we need to be like a branch that stays connected to a tree and not like one that a kid Frankie's age can use to hit her Daddy with. 

1) Branches don't produce fruit when they are detached from the tree and we are called to produce fruit that is ripe for others to enjoy.
2) Branches that are detached from a tree will more easily snap and break. Undoubtedly life will always bring challenges but the closer we live to God the smaller those challenges will appear.
3) Branches cannot produce life by themselves, they must be attached to the tree to draw life from it.

So remember, ensure your focus is not directed on producing fruit, but rather staying attached to the vine that produces fruit in your life.

Thanks for reading!


P.S. I posted a short video on you tube with my story of how I found God, if you haven't seen it click on the link below to watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGe-nc8e10o&feature=youtu.be