Perfectly Peachy

Last summer, Bible Study Mama and I went to pick peaches off the trees at Faulkner Lake Orchard.  They had already picked peaches available, but I was looking for ways to make me move and get on with life.  My vitamin D was low, so I figured this would be as good an activity as any.  Plus, there was food involved.

We had a peach tree behind my great-grandmother’s house.  I was really little at the time that the tree was thriving, so I don’t recall picking peaches off of the branches.  However, I do remember picking peaches off the ground.  They were the only ones that I could reach.

There is nothing like a ripe peach fresh off the tree.  It has a wonderful aroma.  I prefer my peaches with a little firmness.  Nothing too soft.  Now, I’m not trying to crack my teeth when I bite into it, but I want the peach to have a little give.  One perfectly ripe peach will satisfy my sweet tooth.  It’s way better than a canned fruit or anything that is “peach” flavored. Imitation peach has nothing on the original.

While studying Galatians 5, I came across these well-known verses.  “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  Against such there is no law.”  I had to pause and evaluate the condition of my tree.  Not the tree in my great-grandmother’s back yard.  I’m talking about my spiritual tree.

The verses say that if the Spirit is alive in me, then I will exhibit these characteristics.  These are the fruits that others should see in me.  And not just people I go to church with.  These are not just Sunday morning and Wednesday evening fruit.  When people leave an encounter with me, they should have tasted of the sweetness of God.

I had to research why peaches fall on the ground after that memory came to mind.  In my head, the peaches that lay on the ground must have fallen because they were so ripe and ready.  The tree could no longer hold them.  Well, that’s not what the article said.  The article that I read said that peaches fall from trees for primarily three reasons:  immaturity, environmental reasons, and pest/disease.  Baby, that preached to me!

Apparently, the shedding of immature fruit from a tree is a natural part of the process.  Per the article, losing even up to 80% of immature fruit is normal.  Some of those peaches on the ground were not fit for consumption.  They weren’t mature.  What fruit are you producing that’s NOT of the Spirit?  Are you abrasive, unloving, a constant cheater, rude, and constantly stirring up trouble?  You have the chance to get rid of that fruit.  Losing the bad fruit is normal for a Christian and will make your spiritual life and walk with the Lord much better.

Sometimes, fruit drops from a tree because of harsh environmental conditions.  Drought, high winds, tornadoes, hurricanes, or even exceptionally cold seasons will cause fruit to fall.  I don’t know about you, but I’ve certainly experienced some environments where healthy fruit production was difficult.  Toxic relationships and unrealistic expectations from others have caused some nasty fruit to fall from my tree.

And what about diseases and pests that invade the fruit and cause it to fall?  Depressions, anxiety, fear, and worry can overtake you before you know it.  I know.  I’ve been there.  And my tree has dropped those fruits as I walked through life.

Dropping all this bad fruit is normal.  It’s what we are supposed to do as we develop a more intimate relationship with God.  But we need to be mindful of where we’re dropping this fruit.  Think back to young me picking those peaches up off the ground.  In my mind, that fruit was good for me.  I picked it up and ate it, because I assumed that it was ripe and ready for me.  Too often, we leave our bad habits on display for young believers to pick up and consume.  Our gossiping, our cattiness, our possessiveness, and our greed.  And they’re too young to know what they’re consuming.

I’m not necessarily talking about people that are young in age.  I’m speaking about those that are new in Christ.  We get possessive about “our” pew in the sanctuary.  We don’t want someone else to sing “our” song.  We talk about how that young man needs to practice his prayers in private before he gets in front of the church.  We hold on to “our” money because God has enough.  And young believers are eating our bad fruit right up.

But, be of good cheer folks!  I know a magnificent gardener!  He continues to prune my branches.  He shapes me up so that I can produce good fruit to replace all the bad fruit that’s laying on the ground.  What condition is your spiritual tree in?  Is it time for a pruning?  #wepreach