Are you ripe to be picked?

As I read a post I came across this statement which led me to think, "Are you ripe to be picked?

"Women are like apples on trees. The best ones are at the top. Men don't want to reach for the good ones because they are afraid of falling and getting hurt instead, they just get the rotten apples from the ground that aren't as good,but easy. So the apples at the top think something is wrong with them, when in reality, they're amazing. They just have to wait for the right man to come along, the one who's brave enough to climb all the way to the top of the tree."

I do have to say that this it quite a statement. But I want to take the time to dig a little deeper and truly find out what it takes to be ready and prepared to be picked. We are going to look at the process of growing an apple with applying the practical biblical principles that can be applied to your life so you can transform yourself to being a child of God that will produce and bear much fruit.

 If you are a women  reading this I want you to examine yourself closely and ask yourself, Am I riped to be picked? And if you are a man, I challenging you to look at yourself  to make sure your are prepared  to pick when God says you are ready and that you won't settle for the first women you see but you will choose to get the very best, the perfect will of God for your life. And my desire is that every person reading this will look at themselves to be that very sweet apple that is ready to get picked, so all can say , Taste and see that the Lord is good..."Psalm 34:8 (MSG) ⁸ Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see how good God is. Blessed are you who run to him.

I do believe that God has the good, acceptable and perfect will for everyone. But ultimately God will give you the chance to choose. As we look at the process of how a seed is produced into an apple, we notice that apples are grown from seeds but the transformation from a seed to fruit producing tree can take upwards to ten years. Some unmarried people reading this will say I've been waiting, it's been ten years, while others may say, it shouldn't take that long, so what gives?
Well some people don't exercise patience and they choose to buy apple tree seedlings instead. Think of it this way, it sounds to me like they chose Gods good will because they weren't willing to wait for the full fruit to be cultivated for the perfect will. They reacted on their impatience. Impatience can cause you not to receive your full promises or the perfect will of God for your life. You can get your apple but its smaller in stature, it didn't get a chance to grow into full manifestation as it might have been intended.  

7 Observations needed to produce Seed, tree, fruit

1. A seed. You must know that you are seed of Abraham, Exodus 32:13 (AMP)¹³[Earnestly] remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self and said to them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give to your seed, and they shall inherit it forever.
2. The apple has to be dried out. How many of us experience a dry season? I believe everyone has and if you haven't you are lying, or you are living in a dry season right now and you can't even recognize it. I remember the day that I gave my life to Christ and the day that I rededicated my life totally back to HIM. It was such a dry season in my life. I was living in unforgiveness, I was fornicating, I lived with a man that I wasn't married to, I drank alcohol, I was being physically- mentally and emotionally abused but confused thinking it was love, I was living pay check to pay check, I wasn't happy with my self, I lacked confidence, sick in my body with 3 stomach ulcers and I just tried to live one day hoping I would make it to the next day, but I didn't know how I was going to make it. I was dry!
3. Like a seed it has to be planted. If you want to flourish you have to be planted. After I rededicated my life to Christ I planted myself in a church, the very same church I got saved at the age of 17 years old and then that exact church where I rededicated my life at 22 years old, Detroit World Outreach (http://www.dwo.org/)
4. The seed has to watered. How do we as Christians get watered? We sit under the word, we attend church weekly, Deuteronomy 31:12 (AMP) Assemble the people--men, women, and children, and the stranger and the sojourner within your towns--that they may hear and learn [reverently] to fear the Lord your God and be watchful to do all the words of this law,you pray daily, you listen to worship music, you activate the Holy Spirit in your life! You ask God to reveal your purpose and you start walking it out. You begin to experience His promises for your life.
5. Your seed will then begin to grow. Growing requires pruning. John 15:2 (NIV)² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes^[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. In greek for he prunes also means he cleans. You will have to "clean house." Get ride of any junk you may have. Get rid of baggage and garbage in your life. Specific care is always needed to ensure that the delicate process results in what its been made to produce. An apple tree has to be pruned every 2 to 3 years. Pruning removes the branches that don't produce fruit, splings that may be growing & stealing nutrients from the tree. We prune so we don't delay fruit bearing. You may have to cut some people out of your life, they may be stealing life/nutrients from you. You can't do things that you use to do, you can't go places you use to go. If you want to bear fruit you have to keep growing, don't allow yourself to become complacent. Allow God to stretch you. Have a cadence with your prayer life and seek God first (Matthew 6:33), Be an example of a Proverbs 31 women by learning how to cook good meals, be a good steward over your finances, accrue some money, workout diligently, learn how to plan and have time management skills, take care of yourself physically-spiritually-emotionally-mentally, learn something new(enroll in a class), sow into other marriages and families, these are a few things that we as women (unmarried) can focus on in our season of growing and pruning.
6. Be planted with other fruit bearers. You want to surround yourself with people who are living a life set apart and sanctified. Hebrews 6:12 (KJV)¹²That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.  Make sure that you are able to recognize their fruit, observe them in faith fights, trials and tribulations. What is their response when they aren't in church? What promises have they inherit? Find someone that has the promises you are believing for and learn, gain wisdom and knowledge on how they obtained the promises. 
7. Be a tree that can be transplanted and ready to be picked. At this stage you are thriving and being maximizing to full potential in your life. You have weathered the storms and resisted temptations and flee youthful lust, you have shown yourself to be faithful, you have faith in your faith, your standing on Gods promises and prophetic words in your life, you haven't wavered, you are trusting God and you have no fear operating in your life. Now this is my season, I'm ready to be picked, 2 Timothy 2:21(NIV)²¹ Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.

When you begin to apply these principles in your life on a daily bases you are producing a seed that will form into a tree, and then a tree that will bear fruit. This process doesn't happen over night and requires much care. For the bible tells us that to whom much is given much is required. So look at yourself and speak to your situation. Know that there is a season and a time for everything, you are fearfully and wonderfully made in the likeness and image of God himself, God has not forgotten about you nor about me. You are amazing and God loves you so much that while he was cultivating you, he was cultivating your Might Man of Valor...You thought you were ready but God said I have a better plan, I have a better apple and not the bitter apple, I have something sweeter and much taster, one that will satisfy you. He will recognize you from afar, he will be bold enough to come forth, he will be courageous, he will display chivalry, he has abilities, and substance. He will seek God before he seeks to find you, but he will climb if he has to, and find and discover you, Proverbs 18:22 (NIV)²² He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD , the apple of His eye. Song of Solomon 2:3 (NIV)She³ Like an apple^[a] tree among the trees of the forest
is my beloved among the young men. I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste.

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