Character | Church | Fellowship | Love | Obedience | Purity | Unity

PICKING THE FRUIT
In The Cider House Rules by John Irving, we learn a little bit about fruit picking through the character Melony. She takes a job picking apples and the foreman instructs her in the rules of apple picking: “You take an apple with its stem . . . But just above the stem is the bud for next year’s apple. That’s the spur . . . You pull the spur, you pull two years in one . . . Twist, don’t pull.” How you pick the fruit from an apple tree determines or safeguards next year’s crop. Careless picking results in a depleted future harvest. Careful picking contributes to a healthy future crop. The same can be said regarding our harvest of the fruit of the Spirit in the fellowship of Christ. When we are envious of the love or joy in others, we bruise the tender sweetness found in our church. When we withhold forgiveness or bear a grudge we pull…