Are you a good melon?

Fruit is a funny thing. It's odd when you think about it. It's a food that's colorful and shaped in all kinds of odd combinations of colors and tastes. Sometimes it's so sweet and juicy that it's messy. Sometimes it's not quite ripe and its bitter.

Fruit can be messy when you consider it in people's lives too. The fruit of a soul in a person inside is evident in who they are growing and changing to be on the outside when you can see it in their lives. We are all living on a vine of sorts.

How do you tell if you have a good melon or not? I was reading online today and found it interesting how you tell if you have a good melon. The article said "There should be no stem present, because melons drop naturally from the vine when they ripen".

I wondered how ripe our presidental candidates where and considered their fruit as I was praying today for the election. A pastor up in Tacoma Washington said something Saturday night that made me think.

"I don't judge Obama's motives because that is for God to judge. I judge him by the fruit of who he is. I can't judge his motives because Gods word tells me that only God can do that."

It is really true of every situation and makes it more clear in every situation the standard to which you can judge people by. It takes out that grey area that says "what are they really meaning by what they are doing?". You just take that out of the equasion and take into effect the full truth of the fruit that grows from their lives.

I tried a new area of ministry the other day on Halloween at my churches harvest festival. I tried a ministry that is typically is a male dominated one. I was one of three women in a ministry team that had probably 20 men serving that night.

Serving as a woman on the parking ministry wasn't my first choice and I was feeling a bit out in the pasture to not be dealing directly with people which would be my first preference.
I really learned a lesson there in that dark chilly night though. I learned something about how God can use me anywhere people who need Him are.

I was working the Blue lot on the off site parking from our church. It's a block or so from our church and so we had shuttles running every 5 minutes or so to the church from it.
A car drove up to me with my orange vest and glow wand and asked "what's going on here?". They had no idea that it was church sponsored event. I told him it was a free event with a live animal show, candy, games and lots of fun. He said "are you sure it's free?".

I said "yes, it's a gift from Church of Living water". He said "I don't know if a church would let me in". I assured him that we would and he smiled, parked and I showed him where he could take the shuttle in.

I didn't see him return to hear of how his time went but meeting him showed me that God can really use us anywhere. It made me really think about the fruit of my attitude in serving in areas out of my perference. It made me realize I need to keep on my toes.

It challenges me to consider what fruit is growing from my life. It makes me want to be a good melon not clipping off the vine before I am ripe in an area of my life. I want to be a good melon. I like word pictures so I was thinking this is a good one.

A good melon needs lots of Son, water, and nutrients. The soil we grow in is where we get it. The foundation of soil in the word of God has all the nutrients we need and the water is the spirit of God quenching our thirst to grow. The Son is Jesus who shines on us to make us grow in the field.

Standing out in the field in the dark you can get to thinking. Okay I know this is pretty simple and been said before but it encourages me to think about so I hope it encourages you.
Praying today that our President would be a good melon and that our election process is a good one.

Fruit: Love

Song in my head: Give me your eyes - Brandon Heath

Verse: Isaiah 32: 16 Justice will dwell in the desert and righteousness live in the fertile field. 17 These: fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. 18 My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. 19 Though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely, 20 how blessed you will be, sowing your seed by every stream, and letting your cattle and donkeys range free.