Restore the Ruined Rest: Fruit That Abides

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, fruit that should abide.” ~John 15:16

Last week I made parfaits for my wife and me — blueberries, strawberries, granola, yogurt, and honey layered in a glass. It was simple and good, the kind of thing you make once and immediately plan to make again. So last night I went to make another round, and to my disappointment I had to throw out the strawberries entirely. Most of the blueberries had gone soft too, and I spent longer than I should’ve picking the still-good ones out from the ruined rest.

None of that fruit went bad because it was low quality. It went bad sitting in the refrigerator, waiting for a purpose it never got used for. A strawberry doesn't spoil because something's wrong with it. It spoils because it was never eaten.

Fruit That Abides: Why Unused Gifts Quietly Spoil

Jesus told His disciples, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, fruit that should abide” (John 15:16). He didn't say He appointed them to admire fruit, or store it, or feel good about having grown some. He appointed them to bear fruit that abides — fruit that gets put to use and, because of that, actually lasts.

That's the part that stuck with me while I was picking through that bowl of blueberries. I don't think most of us lose our spiritual fruit because we stop producing any. We're capable of real patience, real generosity, real kindness, real forgiveness. The trouble is what we do with it once it's grown. A patient response we never give. A word of encouragement we compose in our head and never send. Generosity we feel but don't act on. Fruit like that isn't fake — it's just sitting in the refrigerator, and fruit that sits doesn't abide. It quietly spoils.

So here's the question worth asking: what good fruit are you letting got to waste? Not something you're lacking — something you have, and simply haven't used.

I still made the parfait last night, minus the strawberries. It was fine. My wife wouldn't have known anything was missing if I hadn't told her. But I knew. It wasn't what it could have been, and it wasn't what I'd originally intended to give her.

Daily Practice: Name one piece of good fruit you have— patience, a kind word, forgiveness, generosity — that hasn't made it out of the refrigerator yet. Give it away today, specifically and on purpose, before it's wasted on nobody.

Always improve the present moment.

~Corbin Riley