Gail Rodgers Sharing the Journey

Hope for the Heart Part 29 - Fruit Baskets

by Gail Rodgers

The man behind the table took an empty basket and filled it with the fruit of my choice. It went from empty to overflowing very quickly!

As I placed it gently in the trunk of my car I thought about the fruit God talks about… the fruit of our lives.

John 15 is my favorite chapter in the Bible. Here God talks about lives that bear no fruit, some fruit, more fruit and much fruit. (John 15: 1-8) He says:

“This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:8)

What does God’s fruit look like? He tells us just what He is looking for as fruit in our lives…

• Holiness (living by God’s value system) Romans 6:22
• Goodness, righteousness and truth (moral and ethical character) Ephesians 5:9
• Wisdom (characterized by peace that dispels disorder) James 3:16 &17
• Good works (growing in the knowledge of God and being strengthened by His power) Colossians 1:10 -12
• Praise (the fruit of lips that confess His name) Hebrews 13:15
• Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Gentleness, Goodness, Faith, Kindness, Self- control (the Fruit of the Spirit) Galatians 5:22

It’s a tall order to fill the basket of our lives with this fruit. Yet God tells us we are not left to try to do this on our own. It would be impossible. He promises to work in us and help us. His fruit in our lives is the source of true joy.

Examine what is in the fruit basket of your life. God says we will be known by the kind of fruit we produce. Ask Him to produce “much fruit” in your life today.