“Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.” -James 5:7-8
A couple of months ago I was putting together a GPS scavenger hunt at our place for a groom party for an upcoming grandson’s wedding. I enjoy doing these types of things and it seems as though others enjoy them as well. To start the layout I motored our ATV up the hill behind our place and began to set the GPS waypoints along the way. From atop one of the hills I noticed a lush bunch of green and decided to make that point one of the scavenger hunt stops along the way. The closer I got the more I realized that this wasn’t just a lush bunch of greenery in the middle of juniper and sage brush, but rather it was a large old apple tree laden with bright green and brilliant red apples. How had I never seen this before? And when I say laden, it was loaded with apples! I got to the tree and unsaddled from my ATV to check it out. Without exaggeration the old tree is probably 7-8 feet around at the base and it’s branches were heavily bowed under the weight of soon-to-be-ripe apples. The sight and the smell were magnificent. My curiosity was piqued. Here was a healthy, producing apple tree in a most unlikely location. It was a long way from the tree to anything resembling a home, or any nearby human interaction. It was in the middle of nowhere and showed no evidence of pruning or upkeep whatsoever. It’s quite possible that this aged tree is 80-100 years old, and my only guesses as to how it got there are perhaps a bird dropped a seed many years ago and the seed took root, or perchance a long-ago hunter left part of his lunch that one day sprouted to life. As to its beginnings it all remains a mystery. The old tree had begun its life as a seedling in a long-dry creek bed but its roots must have gone deep enough to tap into some sub-surface water. Withstanding elk and deer browse, brutal cold winters, and blazing summers, there it stood, and some decades later it was a looming tower of health, green leaves, and fruitfulness.
In the weeks since its discovery my wife has canned apples for applesauce, made several pies and crisps, and my daughter and her husband have made gallons of homemade cider. Did I say the tree was laden with fruit?
The more I’ve thought about that old tree the more I’ve thought about this living parable growing out on our acreage. Wonder of wonders, out of the bank of an old dry creek bed is a healthy, verdant apple tree bearing wonderful fruit by the bushel.
Here’s where this story comes home. Christians often think our circumstances have to be just so and that everything has to be aligned just right for us to be effective and fruitful. We complain of too little time, or not enough money, or insufficient help, and often what ends up happening is that we squander opportunities for fruitfulness because they don’t quite meet our expectation or our perception of need. The old apple tree is a demonstration that the paucity of resources does not necessitate fruitlessness.
Christian, take heart…the Gospel story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection is a story of bearing fruit in a difficult place. Not just once, but over and over again every form of opposition was hurled His way. All of the dastardly machinations of man and spirit were steeled against Him, and at the end of it all there is fruitfulness like no other.
Dear friend, here’s the truth of it, no matter where we find ourself God can make us fruitful in difficult places. A difficult marriage, a wayward child, a seemingly irresolvable conflict with another? The question is, where is your difficult place? And the key is to tap into something far deeper and a far more significant resource than ourselves. In 1 Peter 5 the Apostle Peter is providing encouragement to Christians in excruciating circumstances. This was their difficult place. It seemed as if fruitfulness was impossible and yet here is his counsel to them:
“Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.” – 1 Peter 5:19
Do you see it? In their difficult place they’re to entrust their souls to their faithful Creator. They are not to be grumbling, discontent, and holding their Creator at arm’s-length, but they are to earnestly cast themselves upon the God of all mercies…their very Creator! And then they’re to do good. Another question…have you thought about what doing good looks like in your difficult place? Like the old apple tree in the dry creek bed, in one sense it seems impossible, but that’s precisely what God calls us to do.
At the end of it all may God see fit to help us bear fruit in our difficult place.
