Reapings from the raspberry patch

Evangeline Thiessen

RECENTLY I brought in another picking of raspberries from our back yard. It feels good to see the ice cream pail almost full and to imagine the jelly or desserts my family will be able to enjoy while they take in the homegrown nutrition.

My spirit was also fed as I picked; a different kind of harvest. The berries reminded me of the spiritual fruit that our lives are to bear, and I wondered at some variations I found.

For example, some small, broken stems hung down, with shriveled leaves—possibly from a sweep of my arm on a previous picking. It seemed amazing that the small berries on these twigs had continued to mature, though in a dry way, and many had ripened to a dark red. When I ate them, though, they tasted sour.

Is that like our fruit bearing? I wondered. If we don't stay close to our Vine, the Lord Jesus, and receive our nourishment from Him, as John 15 urges, we may still bear some kind of fruit; but it will lack His sweetness.

It was enjoyable to pick the big, juicy berries from the tallest canes. They seemed to produce so well. Some of the smallest plants, however, had berries just as fat and red. That was an encouragement.

Sometimes the temptation comes to wonder wistfully what it would be like to be a famous women's retreat speaker or an oft-published author. But the fruit of the "little" people is just as honouring to God as that from those who produce much. In fact, "Not many wise...not many mighty, not many noble are called. But...God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; that no flesh should glory in His presence" (1 Corinthians 1:26-27, 29).

Often I had to bend way down and look up underneath the plants to find the mature raspberries hanging down, ready to pick. It almost seemed as if much of the fruit were deliberately hiding. That made me feel almost guilty; for I struggle with wanting others to see the good things I do.

On reflection, though, it is a source of joy to think that if I faithfully do what the Lord has put in front of me to do—laundry, parenting, letter-writing, job, errands, whatever—the fruit that He produces in my life will please Him. Matthew 6:6 comes to mind: "But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."

It is puzzling why some berries seem to be malformed or deteriorate so quickly. Then a little worm or crawly insect shows up and I know. At other times, I am sure the birds have been at the berries, or they have been rubbing against the fence. Perhaps some of the newer canes encroaching on the garden are feeling the effects of chemicals from years before we bought the place.

It all reminds me of Song of Solomon 2:15, "Catch us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes." I pray, O Lord, purify my heart. Cleanse me from the sin that so easily besets me, so that I may produce good fruit for You, for Jesus' sake.

One clump of raspberries grows off in a corner of the yard, away from the main bushes. The berries over there look a bit odd, their uneven nodules bulgy and fat. But are they ever sweet! This reminds me to keep on accepting and loving my spiritual brothers and sisters, and learning to appreciate the unique way the Lord's fruit is produced in their lives.

When it's time to put all the berries together and squeeze the juice out of the jelly bag, each berry's contribution will enhance the flavour. What a wonderful truth it is that all of us as Christians have the privilege of together bringing our fruit to Christ. It is not really our fruit, but His, for He has said, "Your fruit is found in Me" (Hosea 14:8). It's all from Him. What a precious, stress-relieving fact! And to think that such reassurance can come through a raspberry patch!

Evangeline Thiessen and her husband, Cornelius, are members of the Mission Heights Community Church (EMC) in Grande Prairie, Alberta.