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God likes beautiful fruit. In fact, He likes fruit so much that he told each of us to be fruitful. That can mean several different things, but for the most part, He wants us to achieve our goals, and reach our potential. Potential is a result of doing something with what you have. The Bible talks about the Word of God as a seed. We all have access to a Bible and it is full of seeds. When we plant those seeds in our heart, all of the potential God put on the inside of us, can come to pass. It is up to us to put the seed in. Then it needs to be watered (with the water of the Word), the sun (Son) needs to shine on it, and we need to pull out the weeds around it (get rid of evil influences around us). Then the fruit of our life can be what God planned, and your potential can be actualized.

I watched a special on TV after the bombing of the Twin Towers about kids whose parents were murdered in the attacks on 9/11/01. I was so amazed with what great kids they were. What was really amazing was that each one who had a chance to speak said that what they really wanted to do in life was to be like their mom or dad who was taken from them. The best way they could honor their parent’s life was to become like them.

You know what, the best way we can honor our Father in heaven is to be like him. Jesus said, if we have seen Him, we have seen the Father, so the best way to honor our Father is to be just like Jesus. The best way to see how Jesus lived is to read the gospels in the New Testament. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are all accounts from different authors on Jesus’ life when He walked the earth. Do you think he knew how to love? How to care for others? How to be gentle, kind and faithful? You bet He did. He manifested (or showed) all the fruit of the Spirit, in every step. All that Jesus did was follow the example of His Father. We can do the same and honor our Father in Heaven by being just like Jesus. Exodus 20:12 says to honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you! Sounds like a wonderful promise!

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My kids won’t eat a brown banana. They don’t like a peach or an apple with a bruise. They really like fruit that looks good. I have to admit that I like good looking fruit too! I guess that proves the saying that the fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree! We all know that fruit can be under ripe and hard or bitter, or it can be over ripe and soft and oversweet, or even fermented and moldy. Under ripe, green bananas taste like cardboard. An under ripe apple can be very sour, and could make you spend a lot of time in the bathroom —- if you know what I mean. The best kind of fruit we like to eat, is fruit that is perfectly ripe, and beautiful!

In the life of your family, is the fruit falling close to the tree? Remember your kids don’t do what you tell them, they do what you do! Set a good example. Operate in the fruit of the spirit, and make your family and home life the best it can be. If you’ve been fruitful and multiplied (!!), let’s do our best with the lives God has entrusted to us. If we produced perfectly ripe, beautiful fruit from our lives, it is very likely your kids will have all the tools they need to produce perfectly, ripe, beautiful fruit from their lives too.
Actualize all that potential – It starts with a seed!
John 15:4-11
4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5 “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. 6 Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.”
When he said this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that,
“‘though seeing, they may not see;
though hearing, they may not understand.’[a]
11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.

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Actualized Potential Luke 8:4-15
We’re continuing to talk about living fruitfully.
Here’s a recap in a poem I wrote called Fruitful Living.
Actualized potential
Happens only when
We believe the seed of greatness
Is God’s amazing plan

Seeds start out insignificant
But when planted in the soil
Fulfil their great design
Through water, sun and toil

Potential that’s fulfilled
Is fruitful to the core
God’s DNA is in you
He’s all you need —plus more!
It’s a great reminder to hear again and again. God’s plan for greatness really is amazing. When you think about the insignificance of an individual small seed planted in some dirt, then becoming a fruitful vine, or even a great big oak tree, the evidence of greatness is undeniable. Every bit of beauty and strength that became evident as the seed grew, was wrapped in the seed’s DNA. What an encouraging thought to think about! God’s DNA is in you! All of who He is, He has placed on the inside of us. So if ever you feel insignificant, or like you have no purpose in life, think about the potential of the seed. Think about the seed of God’s Word in your life. Think about the fruit you have already produced. Think about what God has for you in the next season of your life. If we’re going to be fruitful for the long term, let’s get ready for greatness at every step. It’s not time for winding down, or turning back. Let’s see the full potential of the seed by living fruitfully from our first breath in our new life in Christ, until our first glimpse of Him in heaven.
Luke 8:4-15
4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5 “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. 6 Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.”
When he said this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that,
“‘though seeing, they may not see;
though hearing, they may not understand.’[a]
11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.

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Orchards of Fruit Gen 8:22, 9:1
You’ve probably heard lots of messages on the Fruit of the spirit, or heard about it in Sunday School as a kid. I bet you can say all 9 fruit of the spirit with me. The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. These 9 wonderful fruit have been studied over and over, and they are worthy of further study! I love how the Message Bible talks about the Fruit. Here is how it reads:
What happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard – things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshall and direct our energies wisely.
I really like the thought of the fruit of the spirit compared to how fruit appears in an orchard. We have some beautiful orchards around the area where we live, and it is so thrilling to see trees laden with fruit in the early fall. My own trees have limbs that bend nearly to touch the ground with the weight of fruit that is ripening to perfection. The process of planting the seed, to the actual harvesting of fruit takes time. When you compare giving tithe and offerings to planting a seed, to get a continual harvest, we need to be continually planting. If we don’t want long periods of fruitlessness, we need to keep planting seeds. Good advice, and encouraging thoughts to be more fruitful for the long term.
Genesis 8:22-9:1
New International Version (NIV)
22 “As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
day and night
will never cease.”
God’s Covenant With Noah
9 Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.

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Living a fruitful life is one of my long term goals. I don’t want to fizzle out in the end, or wither up, but I want to be fruitful even in to old age as it says in Psalms 92. We can be fruitful for the long term, because the seed that was planted at salvation continues to grow and produce fruit. We are still a work in progress. We are still under construction. The seed is still growing in us! He who began a good work in us, will perform it! (Phil 1:6) We should be more and more fruitful the longer we serve the Lord. Here’s a poem I wrote to remind you of that!

We shall be, like a tree, planted by the water
A fruitful vine, all the time, tended by the Father
Producing well, fruit baskets filled, mirroring our Savior
Just like Him, His seed within, walking in His favor

How full is your fruit basket? Is it filled with the fruit of the Spirit? This fruit is luscious, tasty, delicious and most of all beneficial to all. Are you believing for and expecting the right fruit in your life? The right seed has been planted –there is no need for crop failure. Let’s see the right harvest! Christ in you….the hope of glory.

Phil 1:2-7 says this
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving and Prayer
3 I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
7 It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me.
God has begun something great in you! Let’s be fruitful!

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Gal 2:20-21

²⁰ I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. ²¹ I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”^[a]

What emotion comes up in your heart when you think about what Jesus did for us on the cross?  Is it thanksgiving?  Probably.  Is it love?  Most definitely.  When ever I think of the cross, and the blood that Jesus shed for me, I can help but be so thankful for the love that it took to put Jesus there.  God so loved, that He gave Jesus to us.  God so loved, that Jesus gave His life.  God so loved, that we can experience life abundant on this earth.  All because of love!  God’s liquid love flowed from Calvary from Jesus side, and reaches all the way to us.  His love was sacrificial.  He was the sacrifice, and He did it because God wanted His family back in fellowship with Him.  What have you sacrificed for love?  That may seem like a funny question, but the answer is pretty easy.  We don’t have to give a limb, or a lamb, but we do have to give up selfishness.  We have to war against our flesh, and our flesh says me first, do it my way, I am most important.  Love says you go first, let’s do it your way, we is more important than me.  Those simple acts of love, let others know that our love for them is sincere, and that we care enough to lay our flesh down.  If we would remember that in the heat of battle, our marriages and families would all be the better for it.

Love Covers I Peter 4:8-10
As Christians, we have received the unconditional love of God. Aren’t we thankful for that! In fact, it was God’s unconditional love that sent Jesus to the world as a baby to live a sinless life and then to die on a cross for our sins. It is love that surpasses knowledge and love that can overflow as we are filled with His fullness. (Eph 3:19) The Agape love of God is God’s selfless love that set the world in motion, and keeps all things held together. (Col 1:15-17) Love really does make the world go round!

In 1 Peter 4:8-10
New International Version (NIV)
8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.
We are to love each other deeply! Love covers a multitude of sins. When I think about something being covered up, usually it seems negative. We should have things out in the open, and not brush them under the rug. I think this scripture is saying, it doesn’t matter what sin someone has done, God’s love has it covered. That is the love of God.
Think about in your life. What has God’s love covered for you? A shady past? Sins that you don’t even want to mention? A ungrateful heart? Maybe even a broken heart? We can know the love of God which can shelter us in the time of a storm, and can keep us warm in a cold, cold world. I hope you show some of that same love to those around you. God’s love covers you from east to west, north to south, and every place in between.

The Bible actually talks about 4 kinds of love. They are Agape, Eros, Phileo and Storge. The first three are the ones most talked about in the Bible, so we’ll focus on them. If we look at the root words, we can see that Eros is romantic love. The root Phileo, means brotherly love, which is love within a family. Philadelphia is the city of brotherly love. The last love is Agape, which is the God kind of love. This kind of love is unconditional and keeps giving without expecting anything in return. That’s the kind of love we get from God. In Revelation 2:2-6, Jesus actually wants us to return to the way we first loved Him. He tells us not to leave our first love. You can probably well remember when you first met your mate how you would think about them all the time, you would find ways to be together all the time, you would talk about them to others all the time. We can probably even remember how we first did that with Jesus too! You couldn’t wait to get around people who loved God too, and your world revolved around your new love….Jesus. We can get complacent in marriages and earthy relationships, and we can do the same thing with our relationship with God. How can we keep the flame in our earthly relationships? We nurture it, we take the time to do special things together. We make it a priority. We can do the same thing with our relationship with God. Let’s put Him high on the list! Let’s set aside time to spend with Him. Let’s even take time to be alone just with you and Him. If we want our relationship to have some heat!!, we have to keep the flame burning. Let’s do that! Have an awesome marriage, and have a vibrant relationship with God! Don’t grow weary, and don’t leave your first love!

Revelation 2:2-5
New International Version (NIV)
2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.
4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. 5 Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.
Let us return to our first love, and let God know, just like He will never let us go, we will never let Him go.

Intro: We need to get back to the basics of love! The Bible says that the world will know we are Christians by our love. (John 13:35) God’s love toward us, gives us the capacity to love others. In fact, since God is love, when we receive Christ as our Savior, we have a totally new avenue of love that goes beyond human love for one another. Hi, this is Dorette Schaal with your daily eword. This week we are talking about the fruit of love and how important it is to stay connected to the lover of our souls. Here is your daily eword.

You probably are very familiar with these verses in Gal 5:22-25. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such, there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desire. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

You have probably heard the phrase, the fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree. When we say that, we can usually see the imprint of a physical attribute of the parent in a child, or see a child act just like their parent. When you think about abiding in the vine, with the vine as a picture of Christ, the fruit of the vine is from the Holy Spirit. If we are filled with the Spirit, that same fruit should be what we exhibit as well! Our fruit should look like Jesus. The Spirit of God, is love! His fruit is love. That means that kind of fruit should be evident in our lives too! The divine personality and character traits of God can become incorporated into our lives. All of the fruit is centered around love. Without love, none of the attributes of the fruit would be evident. With out love, there is no joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, etc. So how much do you look like your Father? Are you reflecting Jesus? Do you exhibit the fruit of the Spirit? Will they know you are a Christian because they can see love in your life? I hope all of your answers are yes!

It’s it amazing that we use the same word in so many different ways. You can love chocolate ice cream, love you bike, love your I phone, love pizza and you love your spouse. We also use that same word when we talk about God. We love God. God loves us. God is Love (I John 4:16). You can see that not only is love a noun, it is also a verb. (I bet you noticed that!) Because love can be a noun, it is something that we want to attain. But because love is a verb, it is an action word. That means that if you really love someone, you get to prove it by your actions. (That can definitely be taken the wrong way, because a carnal person can say if you love me, you will do this or that for me, and it may be something that you know is wrong, or don’t want to do. But in the right context, it is totally godly.) If you love your husband, you will tell him, but you’ll also show him by how you act. That means doing what she asks you to do with a willing and obedient heart. (With a smile too – that will make her happy – and she might faint in disbelief!) If you want to show love to your friends (phileo love is friendship love), you can be kind, and not talk behind their back, and make a choice to help them and encourage them . If you love God, you will obey His commandments (I John 5:3). If you need a reminder of what God’s Commandment’s are, they are really simply summed up in two things and encompass all of life. Love God with all your heart, mind and strength, and love your neighbor (everybody else) as yourself. Our goal now is to be a doer, of what we know!
James 1;22-27 says this:
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. 26 If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless. 27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
So this week love God with all you are, and love someone around you through your actions! Be a doer.

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