“But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.” (James 3:17-18). The fruits of righteousness are a reward to those who have planted a seed of faith and tended the growing plant with all diligence until its fruits have become ripe for the picking. And while feasting on these fruits can bring a joy to our souls that is sweet above all that is sweet, that joyful feasting is not the end. Every fruit of righteousness contains within it new seeds of faith, ready to be planted. We have to make peace with the fact that reaping what we sow is an important and joyful part of our eternal progression, but it is by no means the end of the road. We plant, we tend, we harvest, we feast, and then we plant again. Line upon line, row upon row, tree after tree. Every harvest is a joyful time, but after the harvest, it is time once more to sow our newly grown seeds. There is a peace that comes to us to know that the work is never done. We are not broken or defective or bad at life if we get to the end of every piece of fruit and see that there is still more to do. Every answer brings more questions. Every time we climb a little higher, we only see that there is more and more for us to grow than we ever could have imagined. That's good! Because although we always have to keep planting, that also means we will always have more and more fruit to look forward to. Our Heavenly Father's Plan is a Plan of Work and Glory, not one after the other but inextricably woven together in an ever challenging and satisfying pattern. I know that the taste of fruit is sweet but the opportunity to sow in peace more and more seeds to bring forth more and more fruits is sweeter still.
