“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”
John 15:5 (NKJV)

Pumpkins

“The plants are growing fast!” My students and fellow staff members frequently comment on the growth of the pumpkin vines since I planted seeds in early July. This ‘Jack Be Little’ variety should have many small, orange pumpkins this Fall.

Third grade students tied up the vines that spilled out of the large raised bed and into walkways. Some vines are staked to bamboo poles, while others are trellised. In time, small fruit will be supported. The children learned to give the plants the water they need at the roots and not on the leaves. Wet leaves on squash are more susceptible to fungal infections. Students also know the difference between male and female flowers and the importance of bees to pollinate pumpkins.

The vines differ, though they were planted from the same seed packet. Plants on one side of the planting bed are bigger than the others. The smaller plants are on the open end of the walkway may receive more exposure to the drying wind.

God’s pumpkin lessons on spiritual growth.

Training.

Are we growing in the correct direction? Are we sprawling into areas where we can be trampled or damage those around us? The Lord’s training may involve pruning, or redirecting us onto a spiritual “trellis” so we follow Him and avoid areas that are not useful or safe for us.

Growth.

We need the proper nutrition for our spiritual lives. God’s Word supplies all we need to grow in faith. Jesus is our Living Water. He never skimps on supplying us with what we need when we turn to Him. Like the plants, we want our roots to be well nourished and watered.

Fruitfulness.

No pumpkins at harvest time would be greatly disappointing. Likewise, our purpose as believers in Jesus is to be fruitful. We can’t produce good fruit by our own power (John 15:5). We must abide in Jesus by staying connected through Bible study and prayer. Jesus tells us of the importance of knowing His Word and of prayer in John 15.

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. John 15:7 (NKJV)

One way we’re fruitful is by being with other believers who hold us accountable. We learn from each other and we support each other. If you are not going to a Bible-believing church, please find one. Jesus invested time with His followers. The disciples met together with other believers throughout their ministries.

What type of fruit do we grow in our lives?

On our own, our fruit is pretty rotten. What we reap from the flesh is jealousy, contention, wrath, adultery, selfish ambitions, and a whole list of bad things (Galatians 5:19-21 and Ephesian 5:3-7 give a few).

Let’s exhibit the fruit of the Spirit, which is much better! Let our fruit be righteousness, goodness, truth, and learning what is acceptable to the Lord (Ephesians 5:9-10).

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)

Be careful of Exposure

Just as plants buffeted by wind and heat can be stunted in their growth, what we are exposed to can spiritually stunt us. Let me share examples:

• Weekly time with a friend found me picking up her negative comments about her spouse. They showed up in my critical attitude towards my husband. My marriage improved when I stopped hanging out in that environment.
• Spiritual growth is affected by entertainment choices. A show is funny, but seers my conscious when it promotes ungodly values that displease God. Other things I dishonor Him by the time I spend on media instead of using the time to read my Bible and pray.

Let’s ponder a few questions:

• What are some examples of the fruit I exhibit?
• Is there an area in my life that needs to come into obedience to Jesus?
• Am I growing?
• Am I spending consistent, daily time with God in prayer and Bible study?

Let’s pray.

Dear Lord, I want to grow for You. Please train and correct me so my fruit will be that of Your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ powerful name. Amen.

Thank you for reading my devotionals. You can go back to past devotionals if you missed any of the 2025 Clay in the Potter’s Hands series, Attributes of God: A to Z series in 2024, or others dating back to August 2020. Click on the date under the title to expand the text.

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Scriptures marked NKJV are taken from the NEW KING JAMES VERSION (NKJV): Scripture taken from the NEW KING JAMES VERSION®. Copyright© 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scriptures marked ESV are taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION (ESV): Scriptures taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION ® Copyright© 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission.