The Good Fruit We're Producing
on planting seeds & pursuing fruitfulness
We are just now entering the season where everything seems to be flourishing. I can see it in the budding leaves of the oak tree in our front yard, the herbs and vegetables I recently planted, and the Texas wildflowers that will soon begin to litter the highways of the metroplex. I also see fruitfulness in my spiritual season: recognizing God’s hand in my circumstances and yearning for him more and more.
Fruitfulness is a great word to describe this season, but what does fruitfulness actually mean on our faith journey, especially when we are in barren seasons? What does it mean when we aren’t necessarily seeing the fruit of our labors?
Trust me, I know it’s hard to continue to plant seeds when you aren’t seeing fruit. We want to step away from what God has called us to and throw in the towel. So many of us think that we have to do big, loud things for the Lord in order to be fruitful. We also may think that if we aren’t seeing fruit that we are doing something wrong. But God calls us to be fruitful with our lives: tilling soil, planting seeds, and nurturing the growth of the good fruit we are producing.
Personal Fruitfulness
As a mom, planting seeds in my children’s life often seems like wasted time. It feels as though the seeds take years to finally grow. While I want my children to grow up knowing the Lord, being kind, and being enjoyable to be around, it takes diligent effort and intention to scatter those seeds. I’m beginning to see the fruit of my labor in the ways that Wesley insists upon praying for dinner every night, the way that he says “thank you”, or the times that he randomly tells me he loves me. The seeds I’ve been faithful to plant over the last four years are beginning to flourish within him.
It’s also taken intention to continue planting seeds in my personal relationship with the Lord and my writing ministry. There have been several times where I’ve wanted to go completely dark, forgetting what the Lord has called me to, and walk away from all of this. There are a lot of reasons why. Sometimes I feel the pressure to build a platform rather than steward an audience. Sometimes I have fear over sharing something that someone doesn’t agree with. And oftentimes, I struggle to show up as I am, believing that I have something worth sharing with the world.
The obedience to continue sharing my message has been difficult, but God continues to remind me that I have words to share that can be an encouragement for others. From my first blog post five years ago to now, God has been faithful in showing me the fruit of my labors, even if it’s taken a lot of time to grow.
If anything, God has shown me the importance of remaining obedient to sow seeds that will someday grow into something beautiful, especially when the seeds were planted in the middle of hardship.
Fruitfulness in Scripture
Scripture gives us a plethora of examples of fruitfulness:
Paul and Silas singing praises and worshiping God after being imprisoned in Philippi (Acts 16:25). As a result, their jailer and his whole family came to believe in Jesus.
Job continuing to trust God and not sinning after losing everything (Job 1:20-22). God actually blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first part (Job 42:10-17).
Joseph, after being sold into slavery by his brothers, forgave his brothers and saved Egypt and his family from famine (Genesis 50:19-21).
Stephen praying for the forgiveness of his persecutors while being stoned to death (Acts 7:60).
Peter and John continuing to boldly preach the gospel despite being flogged and imprisoned by the Sadducees (Acts 5:40-42). Many priests came to faith through their steadfast witness.
And Jesus, even on the cross he asked God to forgive those who crucified him (Luke 23:34).
As you can see, fruitfulness is about the things that we’ve worked hard to grow finally taking root and flourishing. But it is also about sowing the seeds through obedience. We can’t have a harvest without experiencing hardship, but we also can’t have harvest without being obedient and faithful to the purpose that God called us to.
Good things take time. It can take years for growth to become noticeable, and it can be challenging to do when we’re in the middle of hardship. Planting seeds isn’t always easy, and they don’t always take root. But we are called to be fruitful with our lives, and it is by our good fruit that we will be recognized as Jesus’ followers (Matthew 7:16-20).
Isaiah 55:10-11 also give a call to fruitfulness, specifically within the context of the word or commands of God:
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there without first watering the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”
Just as the rain and snow complete their purpose here on earth before returning to the heavens, God intends for us to complete the purpose he has given before we return to him. And as the water brings forth fruitfulness—bringing seed to the sower and bread to the eater—God is also calling us to be fruitful in various capacities. We can be fruitful and fulfill our purpose in our career, our friendships and relationships, our families, and in motherhood or fatherhood. Our fruitfulness touches every sphere of our life, just as the water touches all parts of the earth and brings forth life. Even if we can’t yet see the fruit, we must remain diligent in accomplishing what God planned for us. He will be faithful as we seek to be fruitful.
He calls us to fulfill our purpose and be fruitful exactly where we are today within our specific set of circumstances. We have to remain obedient to sow seeds even when the ground is unyielding.
When we wish away where we are, dread our day-to-day life, or remain stagnant amongst challenges, we are risking returning to God empty, just as the rain would be if it returned to heaven without first accomplishing its purpose on earth. We have to embrace exactly where we are and remember that God is calling us toward proper stewardship and fruitfulness right where we are. He has equipped us, prepared the way, and has given us what we need to be fruitful.
How to be Fruitful
So the question remains: How can we be fruitful in barren seasons? How can we dig our roots into the deep purpose that God has for us right now?
We can begin by seeing the potential in slow-moving or barren seasons. They aren’t for nothing. One of my favorite things about God is that he does not waste anything. He has you where you are for a specific purpose, and he’s calling you to be fruitful and obedient in that place.
We can be fruitful right where we are by broadening our perspective. The verses that directly precede Isaiah 55: 10-11 are verses declaring that God’s ways and thoughts are much higher than ours. It puts all things into perspective to remember that while we can have similar thoughts to God since we’re created in his image, we cannot even begin to scratch the surface of the thoughts that God has. His ways are so much higher than ours, which encourages us to pursue fruitfulness even in difficult circumstances.
It also puts into perspective the need for us to be fruitful: God has placed us where we are using his thoughts and ways that are higher than ours and has given us a purpose. He desires for us to accomplish what He’s purposed and will bless us abundantly in the thing He sent us to do. All of this is with His higher perspective that is writing the whole story. We can be fruitful when we shift our perspective toward open-handedness because we know that God’s plan is better.
We can be fruitful by viewing our challenges as opportunities or in other words, viewing our setbacks as set ups. A mindset shift that has really helped me has been to reframe obstacles as opportunities. When we come across a trial, it can put a damper on our desire to obedient to God and quickly derail our efforts to be fruitful. I do want you to be discerning here though friend. Sometimes we do simply need to take a break to rest, especially as we carry fresh grief. We can’t plant seeds well when we are wells of deep emotion ourselves. We need to process through things before we can move forward again. When you get to that point, remember that obstacles are only opportunities to shift. They’re detours; new paths that the Lord has put before us to further his work on this earth. Continue to plant those seeds, remembering that our challenges are often opportunities to grow.
Another way we can be fruitful right where we are is by accepting the circumstances we’ve been given. One of the most difficult things to do is to accept where we are even if it isn’t what we wanted. I’ve faced too many circumstances that were not what I had in mind. To be honest, even now, most of my life is not what I pictured. The only way that I’m finding contentment where I’m at and am able to be fruitful is because I’ve accepted that if this where God has me then it must be for a purpose. I’m laying down my expectations and agenda and trading them in for humility and surrender for the ways of God. I’m choosing to accept the set of circumstances that God has given me, and I’m trusting that He will be faithful to provide.
We also can be fruitful where we are by continuing to plant seeds even if we don’t yet see the fruit. It can be so difficult to continue to plant seeds, especially when the fruit is not evident. I often feel this way while mothering a four year old and an infant. The seeds are being sown daily, but I likely will not reap a harvest until much later in the future. I’m blessed to see some small seedlings as Wesley surprises me by remembering what I’ve taught him, but I know that my work is hardly done. If we want to be fruitful where we are, we have to remain faithful in the planting process. The harvest will come. We just have to be faithful.
The last way we can be fruitful where we are is by living with a goal of God’s glory being known and his kingdom being furthered on this earth. As much as we have personal goals for our life, we have to hold them in contrast with God’s goals. He longs for us to grow in relationship with Him, make His name known, and glorify Him with our words and actions. When you continue to plant seeds and pursue the goals that God has for you, I promise that you will see abundance in your life.
I know that obedience to the Lord can look scary, especially in seasons that are particularly difficult. It’s also really hard to pursue fruitfulness and to continue to sow seeds when you aren’t seeing the fruit. But even if the harvest doesn’t look like vines aplenty or even small sprouts bursting forth from the soil, it can still be plentiful and good. We must remain obedient to sow seeds, trusting that the harvest will come. And I promise you, the harvest is coming. Keep planting those seeds, friend.
Thank you for reading! I know this is a different format than I normally write in this space. I recently came across the script for a podcast episode from last spring, and I knew that I needed to adapt it for this audience. I hope that this longer essay was encouraging for you. If you enjoy this longer form content, let me know in the comments!
