Fruit

You did not choose me, but I chose you to go and bear fruit-fruit that will last. Then the Farther will give you what ever you ask in my name. This is my command: Love each other. Joh 15:16-17

How I can bear fruit? Jesus said that He chose us, we cannot choose Him, but our Heavenly Farther will lead us near Jesus and Jesus works in His Word for our salvation. Jesus saw us already in our mother's womb and gave us our mission to live in this world for Him and for our neighbor. Are we looking for Jesus and the life He can give us? Or are we busy in our own works without listening His voice in His Word? Jesus needs all of us in our own place for His work and He can bring our fruits for our neighbor's best. What a wonderful life we have in Him. He can turn all our troubles for our best and for our neighbor's best and we can love each other as He has loved us giving His life for us.

World Among Us

"The Word became flesh and lived for a while among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." Joh 1:14

Jesus became flesh and lives among us. He comes to us in the person of our neighbor, do we see Him? We can see the fullness of His grace, grace for grace, blessing after another. In Jesus we can see the heart of our God who is showing the tender mercy and forgiveness towards us, God who is full of compassion and goodness and taking care of us who have fallen and be depressed. God has created us whom He is warmly calling to live with Him and whom He is keeping close to Him, feeding and fostering us with His word and among His church. All this He is doing by His good heart, not because the righteous things we have done but by His own love, He who gave us life through Jesus Christ. This is called Charis in Greece, a beautiful world and a great mystery but such a large love towards us. Grace has come near to us from heaven.

Photo SLEF Rael Leedjärv-Östman: Jackline and her tee plant

All Worked Through

"The kingdom of heaven is like a yeast that a women took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough." Matt 13:13

The kingdom of heaven, do we have it in our world, are Jesus Christ living in our world? How small we were, how powerless, the kingdom of heaven has the power in itself, it can grow even though we cannot. The kingdom of heaven is in the words of Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ is the Word, and works in our world and does the will of God as God has planned. Do you want to be a part of this beautiful world? You can see Jesus in His world in the Holy Bible, in His Church, and in our neighbors. Who is your neighbor, who can you help, who is just waiting for You?

Talents

His master replies, "Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness ." Matt 25:21

What are my talents which my Lord Jesus Christ has given to me? Am I taking care of God-given talents or am I doing my own businesses? My Lord I want to take care of those things You have given to me with my God-given talents and bring fruits for You my Lord. Our Lord has for everyone tasks to do for our neighbor's best, and how many things there are to do! Lets pray our God to send servants for these undone jobs. We can pray for all His servants: talents, power, and all Holy Spirits gifts given for the common good (Gal 5:22).

Wise Builder

"He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built." Luke 6:48

Jesus praised the wise builder about laying his foundation properly and thoroughly for his house. What is our foundation? In what can we trust? Jesus says that his word will never pass away even though heaven and earth will pass away. Jesus will keep His word, because He is the Word, who was with God in the beginning and is God, came in the flesh and lived among people for a while, went to heaven to God, to his Farther and to our Farther, and sent us Holy Spirit, and now Jesus can be with us ever in Holy Spirit, in His Word Bible, in Holy Communion and in Holy Baptism. Jesus is our friend. Have we laid our life on the rock, on our Lord Jesus Christ?

Men building a Shelter for Tanzanian Women.

Mustard Seed

The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches. Matt 13:31-32

So beautiful! The smallest seed and so much power in it. This comforts and gives strength to serve our neighbor and our God Jesus Christ. Showing a small piece of God's Word has a power to grow, because Jesus is the Word who was with God in the beginning and the Word is God:). Our God gives the growth and we are sowers and His fellow-workers, even though we had not a large power but we have the power from our God. How weak we were our strength is in Jesus Christ and He is in His word.

Heart to Heart

"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." 2 Cor 3:17-18

What I have in my heart, is it full of love and compassion and will-power to share my wealth with my neighbor? We are all equal before our Lord Jesus and we can share our love, wellness, riches, faiths, words, passions, overflowing joy, rich generosity, and give us to our Lord who has given us his Grace so that we are able to live together in peace and give as much we can and beyond that from our happy and grateful heart. We can in turn get those beautiful fruits of the Spirit and fresh faith and love to our Jesus Christ among those new Christians and churches. What a lovely mission to live for! Then there will be equality, as is written: "He that gathered much did not have too much and he that gathered little did not have too little."