Month: October 2025

Fragile, Clay Jars.

The older I get, the more I experience human frailty. My aches and pains, my worsening eyesight, my bald head. All remind me that my body is slowly deteriorating. I won’t lie and say that I like it. I’d rather be strong and healthy. But God has His reasons for allowing us to go through this process of slow decay, and we learn what those reasons are by reading His Word.

It helps us stay humble.

For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.

We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.

~II Corinthians 4:6-7

When we fool ourselves into thinking that we are strong and capable, we are tempted to take credit for the good we do.

But when we are keenly aware of our weakness, we are under no illusion that we can accomplish anything good in our own strength.

We must never forget that our very existence depends on God’s sustaining power, for it is in Him that “we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28).

Apart from Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5).

Everything we have, everything we are is a gift from God.

It ensures that God gets the glory.

God often uses the weakest, most unlikely people to accomplish great things so that there can be no doubt that He alone deserves the credit.

When God chose Gideon to rescue Israel from the Midianites, Gideon said:

…“how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!”

~Judges 6:15

When Samuel went to the house of Jesse to anoint one of Jesse’s sons king, Jesse thought so little of his youngest boy, David, that he didn’t even bring him before Samuel initially. But God rejected the older sons who were big and strong and confident in their own strength, and instead chose the shepherd boy who understood that true strength comes from the Lord.

Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you.

Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. 

God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. 

As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

I Corinthians 1:26-29

God uses the weak and frail so there can be no doubt that the power does not come from the person, but from God.

It allows us to experience God’s grace.

The Apostle Paul knew what it was to suffer weakness. He didn’t much like it either, and he asked God to intervene. But God had other plans:

even though I [Paul] have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.

Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.

Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 

That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

~II Corinthians 12:7-10

We are naught but fragile, clay jars, but that is by God’s design. Rather than despair, rejoice that though you are weak, He is strong. If you remain humble, and give glory to God, He will make His light shine in your heart, and He will do mighty things through you, in spite of your weakness.

Good Fruit, Bad Fruit, No Fruit.

And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

~Psalm 1:3

Many passages of scripture liken people to fruit-bearing trees. I’ve been watching and listening to how people are reacting to the recent assassination of Charlie Kirk, and I have observed fruit of all kinds.

Charlie’s widow, Erika, has shown incredible strength, courage, hope, love, and forgiveness in the midst of great pain and loss. I can’t think of a better example of a tree producing good fruit.

On the other hand, I have seen people almost gleeful as they celebrate Charlie’s murder. People who call evil, “good” and good, “evil.” There’s been no shortage of bad fruit on display.

Still others are apathetic. They are unfazed, concerned only with their personal lives, unwilling or unable to produce any fruit at all.

Let’s look at what Jesus had to say on the subject of fruit:

“Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. 

You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?

A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit.

A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit.

So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire.

Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.”

~Mathew 7:15-20

The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry.

Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs.

Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.

…

In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots.

Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!”

~Mathew 11:12-14 & 20

Now is a great time for self examination. Are you producing fruit? Is it good? How about the people you hang around with. The fact is, one day we will all give an account before God for the fruit we produced in this life (Romans 14:12).

Consider this sobering truth:

Even now the ax of God’s judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire.

~Mathew 3:10

And if you want to know what good fruit looks like, here you go:

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

~Galatians 5:22-23

So what kind of fruit are you producing?

Plant yourself near the river of life. Spend time in prayer and reading God’s Word to nourish your spiritual life. Gather together with Godly people who encourage and inspire you. Produce good fruit!

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