Faithful Witness Doesn't Always Yield Results
"The fruits of our lives may be visible only to those who live after us." Henri Nouwen
Once again, Nouwen invites us to stop our fixation upon ourselves so that God can accomplish what God knows can be done if we simply follow Jesus.
When we set our sights upon observable, quantifiable results of programs or intiatives, we may be quick to name one a failure and one a whopping success. We may look at numbers of people or financial figures, citing power or growth. Yet within a year or two the project is jaded and the people are clamming for the next newest gimmick. They enjoyed the temporary fame, but at the end, they wanted more of the same.
The truth is, real fruit (that is a lasting harvest) is inherently lasting and enduring. It spills beyond the moment of its initial manifestation and reverberates in eternity. And that fruit takes time to ripen, because it takes time for the people and the relationships to be transformed so that spiritual seeds of change can be seen.
Prayer: Lord, help me to learn not to expect "success" in all that I do.
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