Edition 10: Faith
“Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self." -Cyril Connolly
I hope you are enjoying my blogs of Lessons and Learnings. I started this website to help me learn to write more effectively, share some of my learnings, and in some way “force” myself into the topics of family, self-improvement, finance, and faith. Of course, I have some passion for these topics. If not, I would not have started a website with the vision that one day I will put some of this website content into a book. Of these topics, I feel the least qualified to speak on Faith. Still, Faith is on my list of topics and true to the cause of putting something out there for anyone and all to read, I wanted to stay dedicated to my topics. Of course, it helps me stay dedicated to trying to learn and practice more of my Christian Faith too.
I feel fortunate that my family and especially my kids are dedicated to the Christian Faith. If I had not grown up in a Christian family, I cannot predict which religion that I might “practice”. My kids might say the same. For whatever reason, my family and now my kids are Christians. I might even conclude that my kids seem to read and study the Bible and Christian Faith more than my wife and I. I am proud and happy for them as we all continue to grow in our Faith.
During one of my family conversations about my website, I mentioned that my next Edition is on Faith. My daughter had just listened to a podcast (check it out in my Podcasts on this website) about abiding in Christ. Also, I had just listened to something about the “root” and “fruit”. The root represents the condition in one’s heart and a spiritual foundation. The fruit represents one’s actions, character, and visible results of one’s faith.
Although, I struggled to fully understand the meaning of abiding in Christ, it resonated with me and so did the thought around strong roots bearing good fruits.
These are some of my take aways and they might help you too.
For me, the root is a lesson and reminder to surround myself with good people who share some of my same values. Faith will help me bear good fruit. Good people help me develop good roots.
Surrounding myself with good people, is like they are my fertilizer and foster my growth. I need to accept coaching, get feedback, practice, have some patience, and grow a little bit each day to be stronger. My Christian Faith and good people can be my fertilizer for producing strong roots and then fruit.
A tree with deep roots can survive drought, storms, and other potential dangers through these tough times. If I have strong roots, I can handle a lot of things. If my roots are shallow and unhealthy, I cannot. Therefore, spending time on learning more about my Faith, abiding in Christ, and admitting that without Jesus, I can do nothing, puts me in a state of improvement and ease too knowing that Jesus is always there for me.
Following are some passages from the Bible that I wanted to share. Also, please check out my archived Edition 6 - Lessons and Learnings about Faith and the Commandments.
For me, these are good lessons and reminders that to be strong I need to have strong core values, adhere to them, and trust in my Lord Jesus Christ who is always there with me and can guide me.
11 Bible Verses About Bearing Fruit from: cara-ray.com for more check out 20 Bible Verses About Bearing Fruit
1. John 15:5-8 (ESV)
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
2. Matthew 3:10 (ESV)
Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
3. Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things, there is no law.
4. Matthew 12:33-34 (ESV)
Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
5. Mathew 13:22-23 (ESV)
As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”
6. Luke 6:43-44 (ESV)
For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush.
7. Luke 13:6-9 (ESV)
And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’
8. Genesis 1:22 (ESV)
And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
9. Colossians 1:10 (ESV)
so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;
10. Psalm 1:1-3 (ESV)
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law, he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
11. Hebrews 12:11 (ESV)
For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Books and Podcasts:
How to Abide in Christ: Why Apart from Jesus you can do Nothing
Dial in with Jonny Ardavanis
What does it mean to abide in Christ — and why does Jesus say it's the key to everything in the Christian life?
In this episode, we open up John 15 and break down what abiding in Jesus actually looks like in practical, everyday terms. If you've ever felt like your Christian life was running on empty, or wondered why real joy and spiritual fruit seem out of reach, this conversation is for you.
Jonny covers:
· What "abide in me" means (it's simpler than you think)
· Why union with Christ is the foundation of all spiritual growth
· How abiding in God's Word leads to abiding in His love
· The role of prayer in staying connected to Jesus
· What you're missing out on if you're not abiding — including the unshakeable joy Jesus promises
· The difference between being positionally in Christ vs. practically living it out Whether you're a new believer or a seasoned Christian, Jesus' command to abide in Him is the heartbeat of the Christian faith — not for pastors or super-evangelists, but for every follower of Christ.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6tFRcUXxfxipUEa10iVl8n?si=vjUSbUEXTZyrwORujAYUsg
Jumpstart Your Day With a Positive Promise From God’s Word
2 Parables as a reflection that greed is not good.
The BIBLE: Luke 12:13-21
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
14 Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’
20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
"The Pardoner’s Tale" from Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales is a dark, ironic fable about three reckless friends who set out to hunt down Death. Blinded by greed after discovering a hoard of gold, they all end up murdering one another, perfectly illustrating the Pardoner's favorite theme: Radix malorum est cupiditas (Greed is the root of all evil).
The Quest for Death
The story begins in Flanders with three unruly, drunken young men spending their time drinking, gambling, and swearing. One day, they hear a funeral bell ring and learn that a friend has been killed by an invisible thief known as Death. Enraged, the three men swear an oath to stick together as brothers and hunt down this entity called Death to exact their revenge.
The Oak Tree and the Gold
Along their journey, they encounter a very old, feeble man who tells them that he is wandering the earth waiting to die, but Death will not take his life. When the rowdy youths disrespectfully demand to know where Death is, the old man points them toward a winding path leading to a grove and a particular oak tree.
Upon reaching the tree, the young men find no sign of the Grim Reaper. Instead, they discover an enormous, gleaming pile of gold florins.
The Betrayal and Demise
Instantly, the men forget their quest to hunt down Death. They decide the gold must be moved to one of their houses under the cover of night so they aren't caught stealing it. To celebrate and plan their next move, they draw straws, and the youngest is chosen to go into town to buy food and wine.
While he is gone, the remaining two men conspire to murder him when he returns so they can split the treasure only between the two of them. Meanwhile, the youngest man goes to town, also consumed by greed and the desire to keep the gold for himself. He buys three bottles of wine and secretly laces two of them with a powerful, lethal poison.
When the youngest returns to the oak tree, his friends ambush and kill him. To celebrate their supposed victory, they sit down and drink the poisoned wine he brought back. Shortly after, all three men die horrible deaths, leaving the gold unclaimed.
pic by Mike Hofer - Farm in Kansas
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