Tag: Store

Pruning Season

John 15:1-3

Is it possible for someone to be connected to God, the source of life, and still be dead? I can answer that question with an experience I had during my early years in college. One of the stores closest to the University of Central Florida was, Walmart Supercenter, so I would usually do my shopping there for school supplies, groceries, and personal items. One of the most important items on my shopping list when I went off to college was, a clothing iron. Walking around that huge campus in wrinkly clothes would have been embarrassing, so I knew to keep a good iron on hand, in order to have my clothes pressed to impress.

While ironing a shirt one morning, I accidentally tripped over the power cord, causing the iron to fall on the floor. I quickly picked up the iron, so it wouldn’t burn the carpet, then placed it back on the ironing board. After the plug was yanked from the wall, I reinserted it and waited for the iron to heat up again. Unfortunately, after it hit the floor, the iron became good for nothing except the garbage can. Even though the plug was connected to a live power source, the iron itself was dead.

Our text tells us, all who are in God, but aren’t producing fruit, will be taken away, but those who bring forth fruit, will be purged, so they can continue producing. God is the only one who can remove a person from His hand, and no man can pluck anyone from Him. It’s sad to be in God, yet spiritually dead, because in God we have all the necessary resources required to bring forth fruit meet for repentance.

Even when we fall, and feel disconnected from the source, forgiveness is readily available upon our request. God is merciful, and gives grace to the humble, so all who are in Him must seek only to use His power for good, and not evil. Connect to God’s source of power, so you can be equipped to produce good fruit, but remain faithful to God’s commands, so that your spirit may live, and you’ll never be plucked from the true vine.

“It’s easier to deliver the Gospel of Christ to others when your life pleases God.” – Ell

Dust In The Wind

Matthew 6:16-21

Fasting, is a spiritual tool that has been utilized for centuries by men and women of God, that has helped to strengthen their focus on the Lord’s will for their lives. The traditional fasting method involved putting aside natural food for a time period, so that one could fine tune their spiritual hunger for the things of God. Fasting according to Scripture, has ALWAYS yielded amazing benefits to those who endured, but to those who took it lightly, they had far different rewards. God’s desire for His people is, that we maintain focus on pleasing Him, but when we do things to gain the attention of men, God will withhold what He had planned to bestow upon us, until we rectify our approach.

Another benefit associated with fasting is, it helps the believer concentrate more on the value of eternal treasures, rather than earthly ones. Have you ever considered the fact that all the things you deem valuable, and keep stored in special places in your home or somewhere else, will someday be either stolen, or corrupted by natural decay? Yeah, those 200 dollar autographed Jordans, or Lebrons, that are kept in a glass case in your trophy room, won’t be worth a hill of beans, sooner or later. Men today place value in cars, clothes, jewelry, money, precious stones, animal skins, and all types of carnal things, that will soon lose all its value. Knowing that our earthly treasures will someday be blown away in the winds, should provoke men to invest in heavenly treasures instead.

There’s a scene in Marvel’s Avengers Infinity War movie, where Tony Stark (Iron Man) and Peter Parker (Spiderman), shared a moment of sad embrace. A few seconds after Thanos snapped his fingers, Tony found himself holding on to the ashes of the young Peter, as he had been snapped out of existence. In a similar fashion, all the things we hold on to in this life, that have no spiritual value, will be turned to ashes, so why devote so much time into storing them up? Rather than selfishly accumulate mounds of earthly treasures, I suggest we do things in this life that will add to our heavenly rewards. For example, love your neighbors and your enemies. Do good to all men. Take care of, and provide for the poor and needy. Share your experiences and knowledge with the younger generation. Always invest your time into doing things that please God. This way, there will be no doubt He’ll have heaps of treasures awaiting you in the future.

Walk in love,

Ell