“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.” (John 15:8)
Jesus says he is glorified when I bear fruit. But what does it mean to bear fruit? Galatians 5:22 tells us that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The Spirit produces that kind of fruit in us. But I am promised that I too will bear fruit. “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide…” (John 15:16). So how do we bear fruit?
I have discovered that God enables us to bear fruit in different ways at different times in our lives. When I gave birth to my three daughters I bore fruit. As they grew, I saw them become lovely Christian women. That’s fruit. When I became the Executive Director of BSF, I saw many women put their faith in Jesus Christ. In Rafiki hundreds of orphans became Christians. Fruit! Praise God.
That was then and this is now! Now I want to know how to bear fruit in my eighty’s and ninety’s? I think about that. How do I bear fruit in an assisted living facility? I have not found a good way to bear fruit here, but God surprised me when a handful of young singles asked me to become their mentor. We meet for lunch every other week and we talk about what they want to talk about. Last week I gave them the book The Mission of God and You by Lori McDaniels because they were interested in my time as a missionary in Tanzania. I’m praying that most of these young people will go to Rafiki’s villages in Africa and bear fruit there.
If you think God may be calling you to bear fruit in Africa, check with Rafiki at www.rafikifoundation.org
No comments:
Post a Comment