Fruitfulness

Each time I return from a jaunt to Europe, people invariably ask me what my favorite part of the trip was.  That’s a difficult question for me to answer, because I, and especially the photographer in me, absolutely adore everything.  You only have to take a look at my camera’s full SD card to confirm that!! But, this time I gave it some serious thought, and there was one thing that really impressed me, the fruitfulness of Italy. 

Many years ago I had visited Italy, but had never been to the southern section, and had always longed to go.  Flying into Naples, a big city, we traveled by bus to the much smaller city of Sorrento.  Along the way, with Mt. Vesuvius in the background, we climbed up into the rugged hill country that rose vertically from the Mediterranean coast.  For centuries, hearty Italians have built their homes into this beautiful, but inhospitable landscape. Why, I wondered?  It became clear as we passed by grove after grove of lemon and orange trees.  Even the tiniest parcel of ground was sufficient enough to allow the heavy, fruit laden trees to flourish.  Perhaps it was the rich volcanic soil, the mild Mediterranean climate, or the industrious nature of the farmers, but the whole area reminded me of an overflowing cornucopia.  As if that wasn’t remarkable in itself, I looked closer and saw that the soil beneath the trees had been tilled, and planted with onions and other vegetables.  Olive and grapes were squeezed in too. Every square inch was producing fruit, nothing went to waste.

  Living in the Midwest, with its vast, seemingly endless acreage, the vision of those fruit-filled, postage-stamp sized plots had quite an impact on me.  As you might expect, God set my mind on meditation mode, and started filling me up. Scripture, both old and new testaments, encourage us all to be fruitful. Beginning with Adam and Eve in the garden, who were told to be fruitful and multiply. I’d always thought of that fruitful as strictly applying to bearing children, and while that is part of it, there is so much more.  God has designed us, not unlike that rocky Italian ground, to be fruitful, as well.  We are fertile gardens, untilled ground able to produce much fruit, but do we?  We, too, are rocky and resist God’s plow.  Another similarity is the debris of past personal, volcanic eruptions. We justify our barrenness, arguing that we have no talents, or anything useful.  No talent, no fruit.  

God knows the potential within us, and our debris only adds to the richness, but our enemy, Satan, keeps reminding us of what we lack.  It seems illogical that anything, other than weeds could survive in our dinky plots, and so we miss out on the bountiful harvest God intends.  I’m here to tell you, that if such amazing fruit can be picked from trees on those cramped lots, then every one of us should be producing bumper crops!! Is it easy?  No! Any farmer will tell you that.  Is all that nurturing, cultivation, weeding, bird and pest control worth it? If you had seen, and eaten, the luscious results that I saw, there would be no doubt. 

Are you willing to let God’s Holy Spirit start turning the soil in your personal garden?  Relax, he has green thumbs, and the results he gets will astound you, and all those who can see your bounty, as well!!  “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,…” Galatians 5:22