“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:4-5
“Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.” Galatians 6:9
“And the one on whom seed was sewn on good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.” Mt 13:23
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control; against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22
General Reflections:
Bearing fruit is linked to reflecting God’s character. It means letting the love which we constantly receive from Jesus as we abide in Him flow through us and out to others for their benefit. It also means trusting His plan, and fearlessly following it, each and every day.
To be fruitful is to have outstanding results in your life; your vocation, career or ministry. Fruitfulness is usually visible and tangible, and it is often a distinguishing factor in one’s life.
How to be fruitful in the Kingdom of God? If you pursue goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and love, you will be fruitful – whatever you try, wherever God calls you and whenever He asks you to do something.
“The Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control”. (Gal 5:22-23a)
Those who are in Christ are distinguished from unbelievers in that they have been gifted with the Holy Spirit, enabling them to bear fruit.
From the beginning, God commands us to “be fruitful and multiply”. In other words, God wants families to grow. He wants our community to grow as He wants more people to share in His fellowship. He wants all of us to grow in our faith, our relationship with Him and our service.
He wants us to grow in holiness which we can only achieve if we remain steadfast in our faith and be obedient to Him.
Being fruitful means being productive, making a real difference in the life of others and generally being a blessing to the Church. To be fruitful we need to allow God to prune us of our imperfections; doubts, unfaithfulness, unrighteousness, stubbornness, laziness, indifference, pride, disobedience, self-centredness, selfishness, and from being childish.
Personal Reflections:
How do the Fruit of the Spirit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control manifest in your life?
Can you consider yourself a loving, joyful, peaceful, faithful, patient, kind, generous, humble, gentle, and a person with self-control?
In what ways do you make a real difference in the life of others?
In what ways are you a blessing to the Church and our community?
What areas in your life need to be pruned by God to make you more fruitful: imperfections; doubts, unfaithfulness, unrighteousness, stubbornness, laziness, indifference, pride, disobedience, self-centredness, selfishness, and from being childish?
Do you consider your Household a fruitful Household? Are your members growing in faith and personal holiness? Are they becoming more committed to service and our mission?
How about your Unit or Chapter; did they conduct CLP last year? How many graduated?