Cultivation

Christmas is an oddly frenetic time.  Sometimes I am amazed that the most basic of Christmas traditions in America can be accomplished by anyone.  (Seriously, Christmas trees are a lot of work!)  And yet the refrains of the season highlight our communal heart's longing for LOVE, JOY, and PEACE.  The fruit of the Spirit. 

...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.  Galatians 5:22-25

Fruit is not produced on a tree by sheer force of will.  We must make the conditions right and tend to the soil.  Fruit trees need to be planted in the right climate, and then they need sunlight, water, healthy soil, and protection from damage.  They also need pruning. 

I really want peace, love, and joy this year.  I can't make that happen for the whole world, but I am learning how to make the conditions right in my own heart.  Here are some of the ways that I aim to cultivate a healthy "Spirit fruit tree" this Christmas season: 

• The right climate... Balancing the energy of "doing" with the calmness of "being" 
• Sunlight... Savoring the bright and warm moments in each day rather than letting them slide by undetected
• Water... Meditating regularly in order to soak my roots in God's nourishing presence
• Healthy soil... Maintaining healthy rhythms of sleeping, eating, and movement - a strong body supporting a strong mind
• Protection... Cultivating kindness and loving thoughts toward myself and others, especially during times of emotional vulnerability
• Pruning... Managing my technology rather than allowing it to manage me

Peace, love, and joy are God's fruit, not my own. When I create these spaces and rhythms for abiding in God, His fruit has an opportunity to grow.

You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.  John 15:3-5

I encourage you to give yourself time and space to observe the health of your fruit tree during this Christmas season.  Notice which Christmas activities are facilitating openness to God's Spirit, creating healthy conditions for fruit production, and which activities are blocking you from opportunities to abide in God's Spirit.  When we pay attention to God's presence, He will produce His fruit: love, joy, and peace. 

Merry Christmas!  

Happy are those
    who do not follow the advice of the wicked,
or take the path that sinners tread,
    or sit in the seat of scoffers;
but their delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and on his law they meditate day and night.
They are like trees
    planted by streams of water,
which yield their fruit in its season,
    and their leaves do not wither.
In all that they do, they prosper.

Psalm 1: 1-3