All Season Fruit Part 7

Greetings Dear Reader,

Some years ago William J. Bennett published a tome entitled The Book of Virtues. It contains stories, letters, and poems that relate to man’s pursuit of goodness. I used to often tell my sons to be good. My eldest Son read this book when he was young. We had some good discussions over the content.

I approach this particular outgrowth of developing a Christ centered nature with mixed feelings of success and failure. I enjoy being good to others but at times fail miserably at it. Putting this filter into my choices becomes a handy tool in elevating my thinking. If I ask whether I am being morally or virtuous in my actions and interactions then I can often avoid making choices that are not good.

Being good to others seems to open many doors. When you treat someone with moral respect you can often create opportunity to show them that being good is not a poor choice. Morality and virtue are not outmoded or devalued but many believe that they are. It is my responsibility to follow those mores and virtues that most reflect Christ and the example he set for me. By doing this I can become more focused on my path in following Christ. That may be the fastest way to be good.

Wishing you joy and peace in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

All Season Fruit Part 6

Greetings Dear Reader,

As I ponder the natural outgrowth of the spirit in me, today I dwell on kindness. I often wonder if the growing absence of kindness in our culture is some form of measure of the absence of the spirit in us.

Kindness is such a powerful force. It pushes through anger and hurt. It allows love to get a foothold in the hearts of others. Simple acts of kindness can make a real difference in the lives of others.

If I focus on being kind I can avoid allowing my pride to make me angry over petty things. Yesterday someone said things negative about me to gain favor with another person. I have a choice about how to deal with this. I must thread the needle of being kind and also addressing the behaviour. I must use kindness to exemplify the other outgrowth of the spirit that are a result of working toward being more like Christ.

I must exercise patience and love in dealing with everything that is an offence or slight. It seems kindness is both the cure and the result of these things. If I focus on being kind, I find that I am naturally desirous of being kind. Kindness yield kindness.

Wishing you joy and peace in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

All Season Fruit Part 5

Greetings Dear Reader,

I realize that there are so many things I desire. Some of them are good and some of them are greed. Most of the things I want that are good require patience. It takes patience to love others properly, to be kind, to be at peace, and to experience joy.

If I am following Christ then I will become more patient as things unfold in my life. I will still feel all of the things one feels as good and unpleasant things unfold but if I live in the knowledge that God knows what he is doing, I can exercise more patience. Anticipation can become an act of faith if I choose it to be so.

This must also translate to patience with others. If I exercise patience with family, friends, students, and coworkers, I can enrich their lives. If I extend that patience to vendors, shop keepers, and strangers, it may possible to move through the world as a more patient individual. This can only lead to good things.

I know there are areas where exercising patience will be a great challenge for me. Fortunately it can flow from my faith and not my own strength.

Wishing you joy and peace in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

All Season Fruit Part 4

Greetings Dear Reader,

It is a little ironic actually. On the morning I am to write about peace, I woke up two hours early worried about something. I was able to quickly refocus on the truth of the situation that plagued me, but I was awake none the less.

If I am following Christ, then peace will be a natural product of my spirit in two ways. The first, inner peace and lack of worry over things that are unfolding in my life should be a natural outflow of my relationship to Christ’s principles. I am not supposed to worry. Since I cannot control and should not wish to control others, worrying over things can do nothing but harm me. The natural thing for fallen natures is to worry. The natural thing for those trusting Christ and following him is to be at peace about the way in which things are unfolding.

The other way in which peace should flow from my spiritual nature is in my relationship with others. I am, if I wish to follow Christ, to be at peace with all men. This also proceeds from love. If I am to love my enemies then I in fact will claim no enemy but rather love everyone. I cannot claim to love God if I do not pour out that same love to his entire creation. It does not harm me when others disagree with me or even dislike me. I must be at peace with them and our differences. Whether it is small bickering or all out war, it has no place in my following Christ. I am ashamed that so many have killed in the name of Christ. I am also ashamed of the times I have heatedly argued over some theological point. Neither is producing peace from a Christ centered spirit.

Even as I write this I see all the places where I must prune my tree in order to produce this fruit. It is neither easy nor have I mastered it. I have to lay aside more of my own views and opinions for the greater good if I am going to continue on the path. As much as is in me I must strive to live peaceably with all men.

Wishing you joy and peace in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

All Season Fruit Part 3

Greetings Dear Reader,

I have seen true joy in its rawest form of late. When I watch my Son hold his new Son there is a light in his eyes that is new and fresh. When I hold my grandson I feel young and full of life. I want to make the entire world better just because of his presence.

Joy is defined as great delight; happiness caused by something exceptionally good, keen pleasure, and elation. When coupling that with joy as a natural outgrowth of being in tune with the Spirit, there is a potential for joy to completely overtake us and thus be a magnet to others.

I have been pondering how I can live in such a way to produce the joy I feel when holding my Grandson in the lives of others. What I find is that it comes from assuring that I focus on being like Christ. When I feel offended, I cannot dwell on the offense but rather must show love to the offender. When I am impatient I must be patient. I must be at peace that Christ knows what is best in everything. I must practice humility and meekness.

The only way that I can produce joy is if I am evidencing all the other produce of the Spirit.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

All Season Fruit Part 2

Greetings Dear Reader

“Gal 5:22-26 “But the spiritual nature produces love…”

The connection cannot be simpler. If I follow my spiritual nature then the product will be love. This is pure love. The word used in the Greek is agape or that which is the divine unconditional love. My Christ centered nature, when it is active produces unconditional love. When I do this, the impact on others is obvious.

I get to choose if I am going to produce love. I am allowed to choose if I will respond with my Christ centered nature or my fallen nature. My fallen nature can only produce selfishness, greed, and all their malignant cousins. My spiritual nature, however, can produce things in others that are beautiful and eternal. I only need to let that nature have prominence in my choices, responses, and actions.

Unconditional love is one of the things produced by that which Christ is doing to redeem me. I can only evidence that produce by living out that redemption in all my encounters. Everyone deserves to be loved in this way. To fail to do so is to hinder the growth of my spiritual nature; to blight the fruit of love that is to grow within me.

Every time I act out this love I cultivate it and mature its growth. I must always act out of the love that Christ wishes to produce in me.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

A Simple Request for Australia

Greetings Dear Reader,

I have a simple request today. Take some time to ponder what it going on in Australia. Imagine if one of our five largest cities were flooded. Imagine all the communities surrounding it that would be impacted. If you could take a moment to pray for them all it would make a difference.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

Fruit that is Always in Season - Part 1

Greetings Dear Reader,

As I roll through my second week back to work from the Christmas break, I find that many have already lost the wonder of the season and are hungering for spring. I do admit I have cast a thought or two toward fresh strawberries and sweet summer peaches. Although I have plentiful peaches from last summer in my freezer and my strawberries will come up soon as the soil warms, there is nothing quite like fresh ones.

I do, however, intend to spend the remainder of winter cultivating fruit. As I pondered what my spiritual self-improvement project would be for the year, it occurred to me that I have not focused on the produce that a Christ follower should produce in quite some time.

In the King James translation Paul analogy is referred to as “the Fruit of the Spirit.” I like the way it is worded in the God’s Word translation.

Gal 5:22-26 “But the spiritual nature produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There are no laws against things like that. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their corrupt nature along with its passions and desires. If we live by our spiritual nature, then our lives need to conform to our spiritual nature. We can't allow ourselves to act arrogantly and to provoke or envy each other. “

It speaks of how the spiritual nature “produces” (hence the fruit allusion) certain things and how those things need to be evident in my life if I am following Christ. I intend to examine each of these and be as open as possible about both my weaknesses and successes in living them out practically. Hopefully I can find better ways for others to see Christ working out his redemption in my life.

So in this deep midwinter as I dream of fresh peaches and Christmases yet to come I hope to forge newer and deeper ways of living out the things that reflect my faith. As I journey through this time I hope to find some things to share that will benefit you my dear reader.


Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

Reasonable Rejection

Greetings Dear Reader,

I have been pondering lately the idea of it being reasonable to reject someone. I picked out the name of someone who I do not enjoy. I tried to make a list of Christ centered reasons that make it acceptable to reject this person.

Please understand that this person is not an enemy. I know that I am supposed to love my enemies. Most of the time I think I have that one covered. This person just irritates me. There is also the dilemma that this individual is a fellow Christ follower, so I must demonstrate Christ to the world by my love for them.

It would seem than that the only people I can reasonably reject are those who are not my enemies who do not follow Christ. I think there may be a problem there as well. If someone is not a follower of Christ, I am supposed to love them and be an example of Christ’s love for them. So there is not a reasonable way to reject someone.

Perhaps I can just dislike them and ignore them. The problem with that is that wanted or not they are a part of my life. They have not done me any wrong and in fact they are nice and do their best to be good to others. I did not choose for them to enter the circle of my existence, but since God is sovereign he did. I guess that means that I am supposed to accept them.

Then there is that whole love your neighbor as you love yourself thing. It seems that there are no grounds on which I can reject someone else. I cannot be mean to them. I cannot be impatient with them. I cannot show them disrespect. I cannot ignore or be merely passive with this person. What is left?

It seems that if I wish to maintain my desire to follow Christ there are things I must do. I must show this person love, patience, kindness, gentleness, and mercy. I must be generous with them and give my very best to them as Christ gives his best to me. No matter who someone enters my circle of life, I must acknowledge that God has brought them there and treat them as he would treat them.

Rejection of others is not reasonable given the measure the Christ endured so that I could be accepted.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

Revisiting the Star Fish Story

Greetings Dear Reader,

I am sure that most of you know this story but I will include a short version here for the few of you who do not. Please feel free to skip reading it if you already know it. I will continue on the other side.

The Starfish Story – Laruen Eiseley
Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work. One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up. As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out "Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?"

The young man paused, looked up, and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean."

"I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?" asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die."

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, "But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can't possibly make a difference!"

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, "It made a difference for that one."

I think that living in a world of problems and crises dulls us to the daily difference we can make. We see the big and grand things that people do and fail to remember the trifles that are not trifles to those impacted by them. This week I was astounded by the gratitude that a student expressed regarding actions of mine that I had not even considered.

I have written often about the importance of doing well in the moment. It is really being sure that we are being as Christ like as possible in the small things that lead to vast difference making. When I lose this focus I become narrow, hard, and self-contained. It is never the grand gesture that makes the grand difference. It is the little graces.

If you want to make a great difference, try the little things. Make a difference in the moment. A kind word when you have been wronged makes a difference. Graciousness when others are in error makes a difference. Being the first to make peace makes a difference. None of us can be “LIKE CHRSIT.” All of us can practice being Christ like in our small responses and that can add up to a huge difference in the lives of others. All it takes is intent and action.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."

Resolutions or Small Disciplines

Greetings Dear Reader,

I have said that I do not make resolutions at the dawning of the year. I do examine the choices I am making on a smaller level to see where they are leading.

It occurs to me that letting things slip is a choice. Becoming lax is something usually starts small. Most things that mature and season us are disciplines that require consistent attention. Over the Christmas season I let my control of my eating slip and found that I surprised when my blood sugars got out of control, sapped my energy, and even made me a little ill. Monitoring my blood sugar and controlling my diet is a daily discipline. Moving and exercising are choices that I have to make to keep my weight down and my energy up.

There is a value to rest but rest must also be re-creative. Once I realized what I was doing to myself I took action. I did not do anything drastic but merely added back to my life the many little things that make a difference. We make the same choices daily in our following of Christ.

Every morning I choose if the little things I do to remind me that I belong to Christ are going to be carried out. When my feet hit the floor is my first thought to give the day to God to use me as he chooses? Do I spend time in conversation with my Creator over the choices I will make that day? As I write or journey to my teaching job do I ponder how I will impact others with the quality and spirit of my work?

No one jumps into following Christ with a whole heart by set his whole heart. I attempt to do it by making moment by moment choices that reflect what I really wish to become. What we do in the moment shows our true heart and focus. Who we are when it is difficult is determined by who we are becoming when it is not.

Like the many little choices that determine the health of my blood sugar, the health of my spirit rests upon the thousands of momentary choices I make in the way in which I view my home life, my relationships, and my work. It is all a sum of the choices I make from moment to moment.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a home owner. He brings new and old things out of his treasure store."