Cooking apples hang heavy on the tree, the promise of
crumbles and pies and apple butter. The comforting tastes of autumn as temps
begin to drop and winds begin to rise. Already, though, I anticipate the cramped hand and the
discoloured fingers which accompany the hours of peeling, coring, and slicing
necessary to transform the raw fruit into tasty treats.
Some fruit needs processing, and that takes time and effort.
I’d like to just pick Patience off a tree, for instance, and make it my own
characteristic, but it’s a cliché which I know to be true that when I ask for
Patience I find myself plunged into challenging circumstances requiring
reliance on the Holy Spirit. It’s a process, not an instant creation.
Wisdom is another fruit that takes time and a divine touch.
It comes with experience, but even those of us with years under our belts can’t
rely totally on our experience. If I really want to live out my faith I need to
keep a strong connection with God. The New Living Translation of the Bible
says, ‘If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to
you...But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.’ The temptation
is to think that our years automatically convey wisdom, when the divine dependence
is required throughout our lives.
Maybe it’s that recognition which is one of the first steps
towards attaining wisdom.
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