Joyfully Grown

I’ve been pondering fruit lately and the process of growing. The wild blackberries at our place have recently ripened and due to the wet winter we had there are so many, and they are big and plump. Unfortunately the winter & spring rains had another effect on our plum, peach and nectarine trees. The spring blossoms got knocked to the ground and we only got a handful of fruit. I’m in a competition with the squirrels for who will pick it first!

As I’ve been thinking about fruit, imagine my surprise today when I went to remove the sticker from my Granny Smith apple and found a tag, “Joyfully Grown” 😄. It resonated with me. How can I grow joyfully because of winter rain or other circumstances instead of letting the blooming process get derailed? Also how can the fruit in my life be used to help others grow?

Whenever I think of fruit the spiritual metaphor comes to mind, “…the fruit of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, kindness, gentleness, and self control…” (Gal 5:22-23). First these are gifts from the Spirit into our lives should we choose to receive them, and then He produces them in us to share with others.

I got to pray with a fighter on the phone last week as she headed for yet another biopsy. We discussed some visualization ideas to help with her anxiety. Everyone’s process is unique but I shared with her my view on the table from Psalm 23:5 and how God meets our needs in the midst of the battle (see blog post “At the Table”).

We discussed some of the spiritual fruit listed above, beginning with love. When contemplating love, I like to imagine Jesus holding my hand as I face something challenging. In my hand I can feel His, and run my fingers over His scars from being nailed to the cross for me. In doing this, I can’t argue with His (or the Father’s) limitless love. I can (& do) express my hurt or lack of understanding, but the proof of His love is right there in those scars.

I’ve been going to a lot of appointments at the chronic pain department at Kaiser. Thankfully they are helping and my foot pain which was exacerbated by chemotherapy is improving. Yay!

Additionally I’ve been healing through painting a lot, and doing the hard work of grieving. When I lost my sister during treatment, and then Brent’s mom, and other life changes hit I kept going by agreeing with my psyche that I’d deal with that later. The cancer battle had to take precedence. Well apparently now is later. Oh boy, I’d really like to find a way around grief or at least a short cut 🙄

One of my practitioners said something beautiful to me recently- what about seeing your tears as rain in the desert? Rain that then produces new life.

Isn’t this just like God? He’s a God of reversals, bringing new life out of dark situations. The resurrection is His best example of this! What reason to hope.

Caring for others who are hurting can bring us joy. So can just having fun. One of my favorite ways to enjoy life is to spend time with children. I love their exuberance and “can do” attitude. I was blessed this week to spend time with my new pastor’s wife, Marby Iglesias, and their three kiddos. I knew I was in for a great time when I opened the door to 3 year old princess, Ilyse 👑 😍

I also got to share my love of painting with their oldest, Bella, and somehow while at my house their son, Isaiah, turned into Scooby Doo! Kids grow in the midst of everyday life. It’s a blessing to participate in that growth.

I want to have a Fruitful Life. In fact, I did something risky for me and entered an art piece by that title (of a pear) at the Sonoma County Fair ☺️ So if you go to the fair- look for my name in the fine arts section. There are two amateur acrylic paintings and two colored pencil drawings 💗 It’s the first time I’ve been willing to sell my art. It feels like a bit of my healing is in each piece.

Each day I want Jesus to fill me up with His love, and then give me eyes to see to whom He wants to give the fruit He’s producing in me. Join me on this journey? Maybe you’ll get to play dress up too! 🤣

I’m left with just one question, was it wrong that I was angry when the squirrel got our one peach before I did? 🤔😡