“This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

John 15:8

What is your goal? I mean, what is the end game for you? I know at the end of my life, I want to stand before the Lord and hear Him say, “Well done.”

I also know I fall short of this every single day. I know I want to show myself to be His disciple, and I want to show His love to everyone I meet. But I know I don’t. I know I can be testy, irritable, impatient, and unkind. I know when I’m overwhelmed and frustrated and busy – in need of pruning.  I don’t exhibit the fruits of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, forbearance, gentleness and self-control.

This fruit that Jesus talks about in John 15 is never specified in this chapter as the same fruit Paul mentions in Galatians, but the word “fruit” is used in both instances. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. I think Jesus meant those traits when he said that bearing much fruit would show us to be His disciples and bring glory to His Father. Jesus tells us that if we allow the “Gardener” to prune us, and we remain in Him, the True Vine, this fruit will be produced in our lives, bringing glory to our God.

After all, that is what we were created for. To worship and bring glory to God. Isaiah 43:6-7 (NIV) reads: “I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

You were not a cosmic accident. You were not a random mass of cells that somehow formed a human. You were created on purpose, for a purpose. You were created by God to bring Him glory. Allow Him to prune you. Remain in Him. Wait for Him. Rely on Him as your source. Exhibit His fruit in your life so that you may bring Him glory and one day hear, “Well done.”

Remaining in Him,

Amy