Faith & Life
What Do You Do With Your Fruit?
Everything we have comes from God. The question is what we do with it.
"The Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit."
Matthew 21:43
Everything we have is given to us by God. Everything.
There is not a single good thing that exists on this earth that does not find its origin in our Creator. When I have success in the workplace, that is because God provided me the wisdom to handle something properly. (Truly a miracle if you know me.) When my family has financial success, that is because God allowed the timing of the economy to work in our favor. Everything from success at the gym and fitting looser in my jeans, to stumbling across an amazing investment and gaining a quick profit — that is all a credit to our faithful God.
Now, to be clear: the opposite is not necessarily true. When I fail at something, or make a bad choice, that is almost entirely through some fault of my own. I know that might seem unfair. But the reality is that God is good. All the time. So when something bad happens, it is not God. God can bring good things out of bad situations, but He does not cause the bad things to happen.
Which brings me back to the real question. What do we do with the fruit of our labor? And I mean all of it — not just the money we make from our jobs, but the praise we receive for our gifts, the benefits that come from our good choices, the opportunities that seem to fall into our laps. All of it is fruit. All of it came from somewhere beyond us.
Do we hoard it for ourselves, like the tenants in today's Gospel? Or do we willingly and gladly give it back to the Lord?
Clearly, we need to give it back. But what does that actually look like? Here are three places to start.
Give 1/10 of your income to the Church and to charity. This might feel scary at first, but here is the truth: you cannot outgive God. Give Him one tenth, and the ninety percent you keep will always be sufficient. Always.
Thank God for the little things and the big things. "Thank you, Jesus, for that parking space!" counts just as much as thanking Him for the tax credit that covers your child's braces. Gratitude in small moments builds a habit of the heart.
Be a good steward of your time. When you find yourself with a spare moment — and yes, I know that almost seems fictional — do you spend any of it with Him in prayer? My own compromise is sometimes watching a religious series, so I can have it all: prayer and entertainment. No judgment here.
Be the kind of tenant the Scripture is looking for. The kind who remembers where the vineyard came from in the first place, and gives back to the owner what was always His.
Give to God what is owed to God. Which, it turns out, is everything.
Which of these three is hardest for you right now — generosity, gratitude, or time? I would love to hear. Pray for me! I will pray for you. 🙏
No comments:
Post a Comment