Blueberries

There are a few blueberry bushes in our backyard. On the left, is a close-up shot of some of the berries attached to the vine. Those in the photo are still not ripe for plucking yet.

Due to neglect, some of the ripen fruits have fallen on the ground. What a waste! A netting must also placed over the plants to prevent the berries from being eaten by insects/birds.

Some of the berries which I picked. All of which were eaten by my wife who claimed that they were very sweet.

REFLECTION: Don't waste our sabbatical time. Enjoy it, surely! But more important, it is a time for us to plan and prepare for fruitfulness!
(1) God wants us to live a fruitful life. We are created and called to be fruitful. It is true, everbody wants to be productive. In John 15:16, Jesus said, "... I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain..."
(2) What seeds are we planting in our lives? What things are we doing right now that are going to help us to be fruitful? Think not only of today but also of a year from now and 5 years from now. What are we investing in the soil of our life that's going to come back to us 10-, 30-, or a 100-fold?
(3) Our potential for fruitfulness is tremendous if we have the right partner! Jesus said, "Abide in Me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me."

Source: J.C. Maxwell (1994) Be All You Can Be!