If I was a fruit tree, I have to say I would be an avocado tree. There's nothing quite like sitting down to a nice plate of avocado on toast. Or avocado on crumpets. Or avocado in sushi. Or just avocado by itself!
There is always that excited thrill that comes from slicing a knife through the crispy outer shell; the anticipation of savouring the fresh green goodness hidden within. But sometimes the fruit does not hold up to the expectations. Instead of vibrant green, the inside is sometimes plagued with brown spots that must be cut away. Sometimes the fruit is rotten and bruised and is only fit for the bin. Other times it is hard and dry; the result of unreleased potential (i.e unripe)
Yes, if I were a fruit tree, I would definitely be an avocado tree. While you may never see avocados sprouting from my ears, God has called me to produce fruit (and He has called you to as well). And trust me, this fruit is much better than avocados!
The fruit I am talking about is the fruit of the spirit - love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. A branch that is connected to a good fruit tree will produce good fruit. It does not need to push or strain - the fruit will come naturally as it is connected to the rest of the tree.
If we live in Christ, and grow in Him, we will produce good fruit (whether we are aware of it or not). A branch that has been cut off, however, will not produce fruit as it is not connected to the tree. Instead, it withers and dies on the ground at the base of the trunk and is only useful as firewood. Likewise, if we are not living in Christ - if we do not have that connection with Him - we cannot produce good fruit.
Like those avocados I mentioned earlier, some fruit we produce may not be good. Some might be rotten and sinful inside and out and must be cut off and thrown away so better fruit might be grown in it's place. Some fruit may bear the bad marks of sin - marks that God can cut away, leaving only the good bits. Some fruit may be hard and bitter and require the help of the Holy Spirit to ripen it up so it becomes juicy and sweet.
God can truly produce some great fruit through us as long as we remain in Him.
What sort of fruit tree are you?
God bless.
KR Ludlow
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
Galatians 5:22-23
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Getting into God's Word
God is fact. He is not 'likely.' He is not even just 'very likely.' He is certain. And if He is certain, His word is certain. No ifs buts or maybes. Every word of His Word is true - even those passages that make us feel uncomfortable; those stories or events that seem impossible, or at very best improbable; those passages that challenge us; those passages we would rather forget; those passages that require a bit of digging and a lot of wisdom to fully understand. The Bible is filled with God's promises and instructions for life; it is God's word to us. He can use it in conjunction with His Holy Spirit to teach us more about who He is; what He has done and how we can grow in our relationship with Him. It is a book that is meant to be read, not just left on a shelf to collect dust.
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
"All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, correcting and training in righteousness."
2 Timothy 3:16
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
"All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, correcting and training in righteousness."
2 Timothy 3:16
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Armour and Helmets and Swords, Oh My!
Believe it or not, we are at war. Not a physical war, but rather one of a spiritual nature. A furious battle that constantly rages on whether we're aware of it or not. On one end of the battlefield a formidable army charges; wielding black swords of deception, hurling fiery darts of sin and firing catapults of guilt. Their arrows are dipped in poisonous lies and their shiny armoured exteriors hide the decay of death inside. This is the army of worldly values; of the devil and of our own sinful nature. They care nothing for the poor souls they fool into serving them; their deceptive whispers of freedom as empty as their false promises of power. This army has already been defeated and will one day be wiped out completely.
On the other end of the battlefield is another army, led by a captain riding a white horse. This army is clothed in body armour of righteousness with belts of truth. Their feet are firmly encased in shoes of the peace that comes from the gospel and their heads are covered with helmets of salvation. In one hand, each warrior grips a shield of faith to protect them from Satan's relentless attacks. In the other hand each wields a double edged sword of the spirit. This army is a joyful army for their captain, Jesus, has already won the war.
There is, however, another group of people on the battlefield. This group sit, completely unprotected, in the middle of the all the fighting. Some are content to sit back watch the battle around, them but do not wish to join. Some have their eyes closed and their fingers in their ears, trying to ignore the whole thing. Some have given up the fight. Some are confused and do not know what side to join. Others want to join the army led by Jesus, but do not know how to. Whilst some of this group are trampled to death by their own sinful nature, others stand and approach Jesus, who has been calling for them the whole time. Each of these people are lovingly welcomed, enlisted and equipped for battle.
This is a battle that rages everyday. Though we may not physically be attacked with weapons, we are constantly bombarded with the lies of Satan; through the TV, the Internet, those glossy magazines, advertisements, our own sinful desires...
Although we may not physically be running around with swords,we have the full armour of God (although it will not do much if we simply leave it on the shelf to collect dust).
Although we may not be standing on a physical battlefield, we are on the spiritual battlefield each and everyday.
Are you prepared for battle?
God bless,
KR Ludlow
"Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes."
Ephesians 6:11
On the other end of the battlefield is another army, led by a captain riding a white horse. This army is clothed in body armour of righteousness with belts of truth. Their feet are firmly encased in shoes of the peace that comes from the gospel and their heads are covered with helmets of salvation. In one hand, each warrior grips a shield of faith to protect them from Satan's relentless attacks. In the other hand each wields a double edged sword of the spirit. This army is a joyful army for their captain, Jesus, has already won the war.
There is, however, another group of people on the battlefield. This group sit, completely unprotected, in the middle of the all the fighting. Some are content to sit back watch the battle around, them but do not wish to join. Some have their eyes closed and their fingers in their ears, trying to ignore the whole thing. Some have given up the fight. Some are confused and do not know what side to join. Others want to join the army led by Jesus, but do not know how to. Whilst some of this group are trampled to death by their own sinful nature, others stand and approach Jesus, who has been calling for them the whole time. Each of these people are lovingly welcomed, enlisted and equipped for battle.
This is a battle that rages everyday. Though we may not physically be attacked with weapons, we are constantly bombarded with the lies of Satan; through the TV, the Internet, those glossy magazines, advertisements, our own sinful desires...
Although we may not physically be running around with swords,we have the full armour of God (although it will not do much if we simply leave it on the shelf to collect dust).
Although we may not be standing on a physical battlefield, we are on the spiritual battlefield each and everyday.
Are you prepared for battle?
God bless,
KR Ludlow
"Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes."
Ephesians 6:11
Thursday, July 14, 2011
ADOS: Attention Defecit... Ooh, Shiny!
I don't know about you, but I know I am easily distracted - by bubble wrap, by shiny things, by avocados, by cows, by... Hey look, 5 cents!
Sometimes it's OK to get distracted, but other times it's not so good. Imagine driving a car and getting distracted by a bottlecap on the road. You take your eyes off the road as you focus on that shiny speck. You cannot focus fully on both the road and the bottlecap; and even a moment's distraction could end in a crash. Or imagine you are running in race. You're coming first and the finish line is just up ahead but suddenly you are distracted by what the guy in last place is doing. As you slow down to look back, you don't notice three other people pass you. That momentary distraction cost you the race!
It's the same way in our relationship with God. Our eyes need to be firmly focused on Him - we cannot let anything distract us from Him or take His place in our lives whether it be popularity, wealth, relationships, alcohol etc. We need to follow God with all we have, not just half-heartedly; we need to give everything over to Him, not be double minded; we need to keep our eyes firmly focused on Him and not be led off the path by the first shiny thing we see. But we can't do this alone - we need God to transform us and renew our minds for in our own strength we can do nothing but fail, but in God's strength we can do anything.
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Hebrews 12:1-2
Sometimes it's OK to get distracted, but other times it's not so good. Imagine driving a car and getting distracted by a bottlecap on the road. You take your eyes off the road as you focus on that shiny speck. You cannot focus fully on both the road and the bottlecap; and even a moment's distraction could end in a crash. Or imagine you are running in race. You're coming first and the finish line is just up ahead but suddenly you are distracted by what the guy in last place is doing. As you slow down to look back, you don't notice three other people pass you. That momentary distraction cost you the race!
It's the same way in our relationship with God. Our eyes need to be firmly focused on Him - we cannot let anything distract us from Him or take His place in our lives whether it be popularity, wealth, relationships, alcohol etc. We need to follow God with all we have, not just half-heartedly; we need to give everything over to Him, not be double minded; we need to keep our eyes firmly focused on Him and not be led off the path by the first shiny thing we see. But we can't do this alone - we need God to transform us and renew our minds for in our own strength we can do nothing but fail, but in God's strength we can do anything.
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Hebrews 12:1-2
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Captain Planet, He's a Hero...
.. gonna take pollution down to zero.
Okay, put up your hand if you ever watched Captain Planet? I know I certainly did! Watching the planeteers combating pollution with the help of their blue skinned leader, Captain Planet... ah, those were the days. Days when, in my opinion, TV was good. Sitting down in front of the TV was like stepping through a portal into a new world. A world where toys came to life when we weren’t looking; a world where friendly monsters lived under our beds; a world where teddy bears and even earthworms could be superheros; where bananas and spinach had amazing transformation properties...
Nowadays, though, TV seems to have become nothing more than mesmerising and mind-numbing images being fed through our eyes and straight into our brains. Sure, there are a few gems that can be found in those fancy flat screened boxes; but there are also an awful lot of worthless rocks to sift through.
Where TV once was a brief escape to another world filled with imagination and wonder, it now seems to simply be a means of filling our minds with worldly views and values. Advertisements scream at us to buy, buy, buy – that somehow we will not be happy, popular, beautiful, successful, complete or valued unless we buy their product. There are shows that feature people tearing each other down just to get those coveted, all important ‘votes.’ Shows where people are encouraged to engage in sinful behaviour for the sake of entertainment. Shows filled to the brim with possessive and lustful relationships. Shows that turn serial killers, vampires, werewolves and demons into heroes. Shows that expect us to laugh and make fun of other people’s failures. Shows that wrap all that is crude, rude and downright sinful in an animated shell and label it ‘comedy.’
Not all shows are bad though (I have a few favourites myself!), and we can filter out some of the garbage by identifying and rejecting values we do not agree with. But if we’re not careful, renegade values can easily creep through the cracks; infiltrating our minds and opening doors to let their friends inside. The truth is, whatever we fill our minds with will sooner or later transform our values, change the way we view the world, and eventually affect our choices.
What are you filling your mind with?
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Romans 12:2
Okay, put up your hand if you ever watched Captain Planet? I know I certainly did! Watching the planeteers combating pollution with the help of their blue skinned leader, Captain Planet... ah, those were the days. Days when, in my opinion, TV was good. Sitting down in front of the TV was like stepping through a portal into a new world. A world where toys came to life when we weren’t looking; a world where friendly monsters lived under our beds; a world where teddy bears and even earthworms could be superheros; where bananas and spinach had amazing transformation properties...
Nowadays, though, TV seems to have become nothing more than mesmerising and mind-numbing images being fed through our eyes and straight into our brains. Sure, there are a few gems that can be found in those fancy flat screened boxes; but there are also an awful lot of worthless rocks to sift through.
Where TV once was a brief escape to another world filled with imagination and wonder, it now seems to simply be a means of filling our minds with worldly views and values. Advertisements scream at us to buy, buy, buy – that somehow we will not be happy, popular, beautiful, successful, complete or valued unless we buy their product. There are shows that feature people tearing each other down just to get those coveted, all important ‘votes.’ Shows where people are encouraged to engage in sinful behaviour for the sake of entertainment. Shows filled to the brim with possessive and lustful relationships. Shows that turn serial killers, vampires, werewolves and demons into heroes. Shows that expect us to laugh and make fun of other people’s failures. Shows that wrap all that is crude, rude and downright sinful in an animated shell and label it ‘comedy.’
Not all shows are bad though (I have a few favourites myself!), and we can filter out some of the garbage by identifying and rejecting values we do not agree with. But if we’re not careful, renegade values can easily creep through the cracks; infiltrating our minds and opening doors to let their friends inside. The truth is, whatever we fill our minds with will sooner or later transform our values, change the way we view the world, and eventually affect our choices.
What are you filling your mind with?
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Romans 12:2
Monday, July 4, 2011
Spiritual Donuts
As my family and many of my friends well know, I cannot drive. At all. I do not have a license nor do I own a car (which, considering my driving skills in video games, is probably a very good thing). I know I should probably start learning soon, but the fact remains if I were to get behind the wheel I would probably end up driving around in circles.
While I have never actually attempted to drive a car before, I often find myself behind the wheel of my life. Sometimes it feels pretty cool being in the driver’s seat. Turning up the music and making loud 'vroom vroom' noises with my mouth, I feel so grown up with the freedom of being able to drive wherever I want. After a while, though, I begin to notice the ring of tire tracks and the smell of burning rubber; not to mention the long line of traffic behind me. Once again I have been driving around in circles; wasting both time and petrol. And as fun as donuts may be, they never seem to get me very far. It’s at these times I realise I need to relinquish the control of my life to someone who can drive. Once again I give the wheel to Christ and resume my position in the passenger seat. Sure, I may not always know where He is driving me, but I know I can trust Him. And He’s a much better driver than I am.
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.”
Colossians 3:15
While I have never actually attempted to drive a car before, I often find myself behind the wheel of my life. Sometimes it feels pretty cool being in the driver’s seat. Turning up the music and making loud 'vroom vroom' noises with my mouth, I feel so grown up with the freedom of being able to drive wherever I want. After a while, though, I begin to notice the ring of tire tracks and the smell of burning rubber; not to mention the long line of traffic behind me. Once again I have been driving around in circles; wasting both time and petrol. And as fun as donuts may be, they never seem to get me very far. It’s at these times I realise I need to relinquish the control of my life to someone who can drive. Once again I give the wheel to Christ and resume my position in the passenger seat. Sure, I may not always know where He is driving me, but I know I can trust Him. And He’s a much better driver than I am.
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.”
Colossians 3:15
Friday, July 1, 2011
The Meaning of Life and Other Assorted Thoughts
It was only a matter of time before I started a blog. I am already on Youtube (http://www.youtube.com/user/MinstrelBear?feature=mhee) for my music and DeviantArt (http://minstrelbear.deviantart.com/) for my drawings; now I have somewhere for my writings.
I have recently come back from a conference where we were studying 2 Timothy. For those who haven’t read it (or may have forgotten it) 2 Timothy is a letter from Paul to... well, Timothy. It is a letter of encouragement and instruction among other things. Paul was entrusted with the Gospel – the good news and the truth – and was now entrusting it to Timothy. He was passing the baton on so to speak. God has entrusted, enlisted and equipped us with His message and has sent us out spread the word; to ‘make disciples of all nations’ (Matthew 28:19).
Now you might be saying, ‘that’s really cool and all, k_bear, but what’s it got to do with blogging?’ Well, um... probably not a lot actually. Although it is one of the reasons I decided to start blogging.
Being the creative person I am, I do enjoy writing. I find writing and journaling a great way to grow closer to God – it makes me stop a while and reflect on God’s word; think about what He’s done for me; meditate on who He is; and consider how I can apply His teachings to my own life. So now I would like to share these thoughts and reflections with you and I pray God might use these simple words to bless you and perhaps bring you closer to Himself.
I would like to finish off with a simple truth I have learned recently:
The most important thing in life is to have a strong and personal relationship with God.
The meaning of life is to be used by God.
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
“Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’” Matthew 29:37-39
I have recently come back from a conference where we were studying 2 Timothy. For those who haven’t read it (or may have forgotten it) 2 Timothy is a letter from Paul to... well, Timothy. It is a letter of encouragement and instruction among other things. Paul was entrusted with the Gospel – the good news and the truth – and was now entrusting it to Timothy. He was passing the baton on so to speak. God has entrusted, enlisted and equipped us with His message and has sent us out spread the word; to ‘make disciples of all nations’ (Matthew 28:19).
Now you might be saying, ‘that’s really cool and all, k_bear, but what’s it got to do with blogging?’ Well, um... probably not a lot actually. Although it is one of the reasons I decided to start blogging.
Being the creative person I am, I do enjoy writing. I find writing and journaling a great way to grow closer to God – it makes me stop a while and reflect on God’s word; think about what He’s done for me; meditate on who He is; and consider how I can apply His teachings to my own life. So now I would like to share these thoughts and reflections with you and I pray God might use these simple words to bless you and perhaps bring you closer to Himself.
I would like to finish off with a simple truth I have learned recently:
The most important thing in life is to have a strong and personal relationship with God.
The meaning of life is to be used by God.
God bless,
~KR Ludlow~
“Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’” Matthew 29:37-39
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