Three Words

This is a celebration long week-end for us in Canada
– Canada Day!
We have so much to be thankful for. We have a great, God-given gift in our country and we are enjoying the fruit and rewards of it!!

My ‘noteworthy’ happy thoughts yesterday could be neatly catagorized under these three headings…..
Gifts
Fruit
Rewards

I went to a new hairdresser yesterday to get my hair cut. She came highly recommended because she is doubly gifted…. not only does she have a gift in hairstyling, she also has a gift for listening to her client’s needs and wishes. I was happy with the results!
My granddaughter’s birthday is coming up soon and Vic and I have been discussing her gifts. Her latest passion is ‘rocks’. Collecting them, studying them, learning their names and characteristics. She has decided that she will be a gemologist!
So for her birthday we will be buying her gifts that pertain to her new hobby as well as a day trip to the Happy Prospector.

We are just entering the season for fresh fruit!
Oh, just the thought of freshly picked, juicy sweet fruit makes my mouth water! There is hardly any fruit I do not enjoy (except pears!) and the road side stands are always a temptation to me!
The farm that I grew up on had an orchard and I remember how much of the fruit us kids wasted, picking it while it was still green because we could not wait for the cherries, plums, apples to be ripe. And I love the berries, plump, juicy and so sweet!
Oh, the tantalizing flavor on the taste buds!
No summer celebration is complete without a visually beautiful, mouth-watering display of fresh fruit!

My granddaughters have just finished their school year. They had their awards day on Thursday and were excited to tell me about it yesterday.
Elise made the A honor roll, and Elora received a ribbon for placing second in the interschool high jump competition. Both of them were rewarded with good marks and praise on their report cards and can go into the summer with the satisfaction of having their year’s worthy efforts acknowledged.

In thinking about these three words - gifts, rewards and fruit - I thought about how important they also are in our spiritual life!

God is the giver of great gifts.
Not only did He give us the ultimate gift of salvation, - “the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) - but He also gives to each one of us ‘gifts’ suited to our personalities to enable us to serve Him, to fulfill His purposes for our lives.
Just as we take pleasure in giving our granddaughter gifts to help her pursue her passion so also God delights in gifting us according to what we naturally love to do!! “Having then gifts differing according the grace that is given to us….” (Rom. 12:6)

Do you know that it is spiritual fruit season?? Galatians 5:22,”But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…”
Did you ever think that God may be doing what I did as a child…testing your green fruit longing for it to be ripe?
“And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard…” (Mark 12:2)
If God sends someone into your life to test your fruit, will they find it ripe for picking? Will they find it sweet and nourishing to their soul? Or will it be still be hard and green, good for nothing but to be cast aside?

How we all love rewards, but while a gift is ‘unmerited’ , a reward is praise given for acknowledged effort.
One day soon our ‘school term’ will be over and Jesus will come and announce the biggest Awards Day this world has ever seen.
“And behold I come quickly and my reward is with me, to give every man according to his work.” (Rev. 22:12)

I challenge you, as you enjoy the festivities this week-end, be reminded of these three words, gifts, fruit, rewards,
and think about their spiritual relevancy in your life!