Day 5 - Friday, January 13, 2023

Lamentations 3:22-23

“Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.”

Have you ever let fruit stay too long after it has passed its ripe phase? Once the fruit begins to rot there are a series of events that take place. First the fruit begins to smell. Not horribly bad at first, but after a while the smell is intolerable. Next, the fruit begins to push out gross juices. These juices attract insects. The insects are attracted to the smell and begin feeding on the rotted fruit. Before long you have multiple issues- the smell is intolerable, the insects are taking over, and the only thing you can think about is the disgusting fruit that was allowed to stay longer than it should have.

The truth is we usually deal with bad fruit before it gets too far out of hand, but not so much with spiritual and emotional fruit in our lives. When we allow for unforgiveness, bitterness, anxiety, fear, or other spiritual and emotional matters linger longer than they should, they produce similar outcomes as rotten fruit. First the smell of our life changes. Not so much at the beginning but left too long we become intolerable to the people around us. Our joy is gone. We are more irritable. Our temper is short. Our disgust level goes up. After this we attract insects- either spiritual or people who keep us stuck in our daily routines.

How do we know we are in this cycle? Is our attitude more critical than it is joyful? Are our relationships growing or are people running from us? Do our conversations revolve around talking through people’s shortcomings? If so, there is a great possibility we have allowed something to fester in our hearts and begin to produce rotten fruit.

What’s the solution? Lean into the mercies of the Lord. His mercies are new every morning. It does not matter what people do to you when your focus is on God’s great faithfulness. Don’t let your days stack. Begin new every day in God’s mercies toward you and in your mercies towards others.