"The Roots of the Fruit..."

"Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine, In the very heart of your house, Your children like olive plants all around your table."
Psalm 128:3

"I live in Syria and have inherited a healthy looking olive tree in my garden. I've been here almost a year and haven't seen any sign of fruit. I've heard you have to know what you are doing to get olive trees to fruit. Is that so and if so, what's the secret?" (taken from a website regarding growing olive plants...)

I found myself relating to the woman who wrote this question...not regarding real plants, but my children...=) "i have healthy children in my home, i've been changing diapers for almost a year and haven't seen any sign of fruit. I've heard you have to be a perfect parent...i'm not so sure about this mother role...what is the secret?" =)

As the gospel continues to change stew and I's lives, I have found that it is my central place I go for any advice or help with training my children. "What does the gospel say?" is the question i ask in all situations with my children. And it, along with the explanation from a friend, is where I came to really focus on roots rather than the fruits my children were bearing or lacking.

Did you know that an olive tree can't even bear fruit until about 4 yrs of age? and then different varieties can't bear fruit until 16yrs of age! Well, when i found that children were referred to in the bible like "olive plants"...new language and thoughts behind what we "do" in our home to teach our children unfolded.

How often have you daydreamed about your children obeying you...sacrificially serving you...never complaining or arguing...being adults and serving Jesus with their lives? I know you have...and I have too. I mean, when you've instructed them and spanked them and done everything your 'child-rearing' book told you to do? Don't you begin to think about the fruit? look for it? poke at the darn child to see if there is anything producing?? of course we do!

But as i "rediscovered" the gospel in my life, i began to realize, it is more about the roots.... fruit sure doesn't just come up from nowhere and quickly...we've discovered that in our own garden...it all takes time and with attention on the roots.

We had an aloe plant in our garden and it looked so horrible after we planted it...i was ready to pull it up and throw it away...but with Jonathan, our expert gardener, we discovered that the roots of the plant were sensitive...it needed to have ground to drain water properly...so we did that...still looked awful! then we discovered that sometimes plants look bad on the outside, b/c they are putting more energy into planting their roots rather than producing on the surface...wow! that was genius to me! that was my kids!! man do they look unruly on the outside sometimes, but i was determined that I was going to help plant their roots in the truth of God and no longer expect fruit before bearing years....whatever that may be.

focus on roots....that is what we are doing....

Tomorrow I'll give you an example in our home...for now...i think this is long enough...=)