Remember, O Lord, your compassion and unfailing love,
….which you have shown from long ages past.
Do not remember the rebellious sins of my youth.
….Remember me in the light of your unfailing love,
….for you are merciful, O Lord. Psalm 25:6-7 NLT

Sometimes, Father, I just feel like I need something fresh to say to You. This passage is thousands of years old, but it is “new” to my heart and mind. Amen.
Luke 13:6-9 (<<click here to read the passage)
At the front of our house, there is a little nook where the room on that end of the house sits back a little over three feet. Over the years we have planted several things in that spot. It is very prominent when you pull in our driveway, so anything growing there could be easily seen, and hopefully enjoyed.
Early on we tried a couple of clematises but alas below our topsoil lies a lot of clay. With poor drainage, they never bloomed and just did not grow well at all. Several years ago, we planted honeysuckle with a trellis behind it for support. The first couple of years it did well and then over time it bloomed less and less, but it grew like crazy! Vines grew behind where our siding and its tendrils along the ground were infiltrating our flowers.
Over time it was more of a bother than an asset. Its blossoms were barely existent, and we were constantly trying to keep it under control. We finally had enough of it and cut it out, root base, and all. It was sucking up nutrients to grow and in return shortchanged us on aromatic blooms and just about took over the corner!
In today’s verses from Luke’s Gospel, Jesus shared a parable about a barren fig tree. Typically, a fig tree takes two years to produce fruit once planted and the owner of this garden had patiently waited three years…and still no fruit! He wanted figs and it wasn’t producing, so he told his gardener,

“Cut it down. It’s just taking up space in the garden.”

His gardener talked him into giving it another year, hoping if he fertilized and gave it a little extra attention that maybe it would bear fruit.
How long have you been a follower of Jesus? I have followed him for over 50 years. I have born fruit, i.e. I have impacted others with the Good News that Jesus provides us a salvation that can be found nowhere else. Only He can forgive us of our sins and provide us with an eternal relationship with Him.
But many times, I could be compared to our old honeysuckle. I have consumed what has been laid before me. I have “grown”, as such, but the fruit of my labors has been stinted. I’ve had lots of foliage but fewer blooms in my life putting out the aroma of Christ.
In 2 Corinthians 2:15, the Apostle Paul tells us,

For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ [which ascends] to God, [discernible both] among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing… AMP

Jesus’ parable echoes the prophetic words of John the Baptist found in Luke 3:9,

“Even now the ax of God’s judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire.” NLT

Lord Jesus, may I yield to Your pruning in my life that I may be one to produce much fruit. May I bloom profusely giving forth an aroma to those around me that draws them to You. Amen.

Aug 18th, 2020, Tues, 8:24 pm