Have you ever missed opportunities God gave you?
I certainly have. It feels like such a waste, doesn’t it?
Sometimes I have acted too soon and sometimes I have responded too late to do what God wanted me to do.
It reminds of what happens with my three peach trees.
Unripe and over-ripe peaches
It’s spring time here in the United States. The weather is warming up. The flowers are starting to bloom. AND my peach trees are in blossom. That means I will have lots of tasty peaches to eat later in the summer.
Unfortunately, some of the peaches always get knocked of the tree before they get ripe. And invariably, some of the peaches will over-ripen on the tree, fall to the ground and rot. Yuck. What a mess. What a waste!
But usually, even though some fruit is lost, it always amazes me how productive my peach trees are each year.
So, I was thinking about the bushels of peaches I get each year and that reminded me of the fruit of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5:22, 23:
“…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Unripe and over-ripe fruit of the Spirit
Sometimes the fruit of the Spirit, which God gives us, is bountiful and we use these gifts and the opportunities that come with them wisely.
But other times, just like some of the peaches fall that to the ground before they’re ripe, we do something before God tells us and that opportunity is like the little green peach that falls to the ground before it’s ripe.
And then there are the times, it seems like we waste the opportunities God gives us by waiting too long to follow His directions. It’s kind of like the peaches on my tree that aren’t picked when they’re ripe and they rot instead.
We can either act too quickly or too slowly to God’s plans for us and the opportunity is lost.
Peaches in the compost pile
But you know what I do with those unripe and over ripe peaches? I rake them up and add them to the compost pile. They decompose and then offer nourishment for next year’s garden.
So when you mess up and don’t do something God has given you to do, it’s not great, but it’s the end of the world. You can put that unripe or rotten opportunity into your “spiritual compost pile.” All that was bad about that experience will rot away, and what is left is God’s love and your desire to do what is right (which was there all along).
Missed opportunities in your “spiritual compost pile”
You can take this “spiritual compost” and apply it to the next task at hand. You can take the lessons learned and the humility gained forward with you and it will bless all you do. Just like adding regular compost to your garden will help the vegetables and flowers grow better.
Thanks so much for listening and sharing this with a friend.
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or comments about today’s episode. I’d love to hear from you.
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Bible workshop: Praying with the Mindset of Jesus
Do you ever wish your prayers could be more effective?
In this Bible workshop you’ll learn:
- What it means to pray with the “mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16)
- How to use the spiritual lens Jesus looked through to heal like he did
- What the main reason is our prayers often fail to bring healing
- How to shift from the Adam-mindset to the Jesus-mindset (and why you can’t combine the two)
- How to regain your inspiration when you feel spiritually bankrupt and your prayers seem like empty words
- How to pray with the spiritual authority and expectation of Jesus
Two Saturdays: April 17, April 24
1:00-3:00 pm EDTTo register, go to prayerfulliving.com
NOTICE: If you missed the first class, or find this after it’s over, you can still register for the class. The recordings will be available.
Blessings,
James
P. S. Please support the show.
Bible quotes in this episode:
Galatians 5:22, 23 ESV
22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience (KJV: long-suffering), kindness (KJV: gentleness), goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness (KJV: meekness), self-control (KJV: temperance); against such things there is no law.”
Matthew 26:75 ESV
75 And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.
John 21:15-17 ESV
15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
16 He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.”
17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.
