The righteous thrive like a palm tree and grow like a cedar tree in Lebanon. Planted in the house of the Lord, they thrive in the courts of our God. They will bear fruit in old age, healthy and green, to declare: “The Lord is just; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.” Psalm 92:12-15
And I pray this: that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, so that you can approve the things that are superior and can be pure and blameless in the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. Philippians 1:9-11
My words…
Praise
I wonder why You liken Your righteousness to fruit. Then I think: Is there anything so lovely as a healthy tree loaded with ripe, colorful apples? At harvest, the branches are weighed down. Nothing can keep the apples from bursting onto the scene. And I am drawn to them. I can’t walk through an orchard without reaching up and plucking one from a branch. That’s what it’s there for. It’s not supposed to hang until it rots and falls to the ground. It’s there for everyone to enjoy. My hunger is satisfied, and I absorb the nutrients and grow. Oh, I get it. Sounds a lot like Your righteousness.
Prayer for me
I am called by You to be a fruit-bearer, but I’m convinced that my branches are not weighed down, loaded with the fruit of righteousness. Oh, there are a few here and there within the leaves, but not nearly enough in light of the source of growing power living within me. Help me to keep growing, longing to be filled with Your righteousness so my fruit will burst forth. And not only in what I do with my hands, but every thought, every intent, every decision.
Forgive me
Forgive me for being tempted to believe that bearing fruit for You and through You is a wearying prospect, and one that lessens with age. The Psalmist writes that those who thrive in Your courts will bear fruit into old age – healthy and green. My body may be drying out, but my fruit should be fresh and plentiful.
Prayer for others
Lord, I pray for a particular group of people today. Some of my brothers and sisters in the Spirit suffer from depression, melancholy. They are not bearing fruit because they cannot see past their sadness and hopelessness. I cry out to You to comfort them today. Lift their spirits out of the darkness and into the warmth of Your light. Wrap them in Your love and ease their distress. Smooth the wrinkles of their brow and dry their tears. Drench them with hope. I long to see them laughing again.
More praise
I praise You and thank You for fruit. Not only the fruit of Your righteousness, but the fruit with the juice that drips down my chin.
