• The Fruit of Gratefulness

Posted by: kidhelper on Monday, November 19th, 2007

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Saturday, while taking a walking break from my writing in Palm Springs, I found myself checking out the fruit to determine its readiness for picking. The grapefruit turns from green to yellow, then brighter yellow to a reddish blush. When this reddish blush appears, that’s how you can tell this type of grapefruit is ripe. You see, it takes months for the grapefruit trees to be ready for harvest. The nice Spring flower buds are but the beginning of months of growth. Finally, by late November, some are ready, by December and January the trees are heavily laden with ripened fruit, some even dropping to the ground.

All this is particularly true, if these hardy trees can withstand the dry heat of the incredible summer weather here, the forceful winds with sand, and the plummeting temperatures of the desert nights. It’s a wonder that any fruit remain on the trees until now. There are numerous grapefruit trees in the Condo grounds. There are more than enough fruit for all the residents that would like them. Most guests pick them and give them away. They spoil, when they lay around on the grounds, so the management and gardeners are happy when they are all picked, which makes room for another season.

I have been contemplating the idea that Gratefulness is like fruit, a grapefruit. Let me try to explain…

I like to think of gratefulness as my deep personal response to anything that God does, just for me. It is, as though, I was the only one in the family. Of course, that is not true, but it feels that personal at times, when you know “all good and perfect gifts come from Him.” I think the backdrop for gratefulness is understanding something of need. Where there is great need, maybe even hopeless need, there can be an even greater abundance of gratitude, a harvest, if you will.

We live a culture where too often we get jaded with our surplus and never really experience the suffering of unfulfilled need. I have been to a few really poor countries now where genuine need really cries out for answers. Even the Christians struggle with these issues. Many of these brothers and sisters look to the American Christians for potential help. The value of our dollar is not strong in many countries right now, but in other places our money can do so much more in some poorer countries, like India or Mexico.

If the fruit of gratitude were like grapefruit, then we would have to wait for it to ripen, until the peak of the season. I am not suggesting that gratitude is only seasonal, like once a year. But it seems to me that Thanksgiving is one of those seasons when I look over my whole year. I tend to remember the adversity and hardships and remember how God has brought me through the trials and temptations. That’s when I get in touch with my deepest gratitude. That is when I check to see if my gratitude has gotten ripe. Some varieties of grapefruit are sweet when they are ripe, that’s the kind I like. Expressions of gratitude can be sweet for us and others too.

Is your gratitude ripe yet? Just checking the fruit today. How are you doing? Not much longer for your gratitude fruit to ripen. Thanksgiving is coming soon. Is your gratitude ripe for the picking? Are your ready for expressing your ripe gratitude? Others need to enjoy your fruitful expression.

Let there be a harvest of gratitude to God for all He has done for us. That’s what I am going to do this Thanksgiving season.

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