The fruit that God produces in us is not for our own use. He is the vine and we are the branches used to produce fruit that others can use.
They will pick what they need. Sometimes sweet. Sometimes sour. Or maybe just kind of in between. Maybe even bitter fruit at times.
The point being, that people will find what they need from us. At different times, we may be useful to one type of person. At another time, someone else may find a thing from us they can use. We just don’t know.
“And it was the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.” (Luke 23:49)
The sixth hour would have been high noon. This is the pivotal point of all history. Right here during these 3 hours. Everything before and everything after has its focus on that moment.
Upon that cruel post, the Son of God suffered the agonies of all the sins of all men and women who ever had and ever would live. He became “sin for us”. He took all the penalties of all our sin upon Himself.
God took our punishment so that we would not have to face His holiness on our own. That means ALL of it. Not just a little bit, a partial bit, 99.999%. 100% of the wrath of God poured out upon Christ in that moment.
As Christians, we tend to avoid the hard stuff. We are mostly engaged in pain management. I confess to this. Life is hard. And there comes a time when it can be hard on a regular basis. And this pain is not easily managed. Sometimes not at all.
Most Christians live in a romanticized fantasy of what the Christian life should be. When I first became a Christian, I saw this new life portrayed in Christian films, magazines, radio and books. It was all very beautiful, fashionable, bright and comfortable.
There was a time that I thought about going to seminary. To a very beautiful place that I saw in the Christian magazines that would allow me to grow in Biblical truth and become a pastor or whatever God had for me. That future was so bright I had to wear shades.
But life takes funny turns.
“Practical Tips” on How to Rise from the Dead
One of the problems I often face in prayer is that I am concerned with saying the right thing. That I am providing all the information God needs to know. Not forgetting any crucial point. And being careful not to mess up in the way and manner I ask for stuff.
I worry that I will not cover all the details properly. That something vital will be left out.
Recently, I was watching an old episode from the X-Files. Actually one of my favorite ones. It was about a genie, like the one from Aladdin’s lamp. The genie would grant 3 wishes. But you had to be careful. The manifestation of a wish could be disastrous. It was about not providing enough information, not asking in a very specific way. You needed to be really careful or things could go very badly. REALLY BAD.
Eternal Approach 
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