A Call to Greater Humility

As I was preparing the apples I had collected from my father’s place yesterday to be made into applesauce, I was reminded again of the great need for continued humility in our attitudes. I have received a most precious lesson from these apples that I do not want to forget.

Here in the Willamette Valley, the apples were able to pollinate most profusely, and apples are seen all over, just falling off the trees. Being aware that this is the year of plenty, I had purposed in my heart to take advantage of the opportunity and gather apples and make applesauce enough for several years, if possible, as our family seems to devour the savory delicacy, especially when other fresh fruit is not available.

Well, it happened that our family needed to spend three weeks in my father’s home to care for him while my sister’s family was away. During this time his yellow transparent apple tree was loaded with good, worm-free, organic apples. I had come to the conclusion years ago that these apples were not much good other than for eating fresh off the tree, as they didn’t seem to have much flavor and were also quite tart. I had mentioned this to my sister who was living there. So, we labored in clearing the fallen fruit from the ground as to keep the area clear from fermenting fruit and the gathering of insects. We first took them over to the goats in a nearby field, but in dumping the buckets there, we discovered that they were not interested, and realized that perhaps their appetites were satisfied by the many blackberries that were available to munch on. Next we took a couple buckets back to our home to throw out to the two sheep and the chickens that we had. In gathering buckets full and hauling to our location, we also discovered that perhaps the supply was overwhelming them as well, as they were being found rotting on the ground, so we started to dump the apples into our compost area.

I wondered about these apples, and how much work they had been, and all to a great waste—why was such a tree even allowed to grow! We faithfully labored in gathering and hauling each day until last week when my sister’s family returned, and we were able to return to our own home.

Well, yesterday was my day to care for my father. On arriving early my sister greeted me warmly and asked with great wonder why I had thought those apples were no good to put into sauce, as she had been gathering them each morning and made some of the best tasting applesauce around. Out the door her family went (with a large bowl of applesauce in her arms to share at a potluck they would be taking part in that day), with a “taste and see” on her lips as they departed. I went and found the sampling in her fridge that she had mentioned and really couldn’t wait to try it out. I took a spoonful and discovered that they were absolutely right. The sauce was so good that I took several spoonfuls and with much self-denial left the remainder of the bowl for their family to enjoy.

I truly had much to ponder on. To say the least, I was greatly humbled in my heart. I do indeed desire a walk of godly humility, and the Lord showed me that it is so easy to feel confident in any area of previous experience and that we need His Spirit to help us to be lowly in the estimation of our own understanding of things.

Thoughts also came to mind on how the principles in the Bible that indicate passiveness, plainness—true godliness, are not apparently attractive to the flesh. They do not appeal naturally to us in our humanity. We need also to “taste and see” what is truly there for each of us hidden in God’s promises for His children. Each one of us have been born with a willfulness of self and conditioned in so many ways to satisfy the lusts of the flesh. We are blind to these things, until we allow the Holy Spirit to deal with us fully.

I thank the Lord for being faithful to my soul and its needs. I want to prosper in my soul, but it takes a willingness to know that we are in continual need of the Lord to help us in order to make it to heaven.

I thank the Lord for this time to write down these thoughts. It is the beginning of the apple season and, Lord willing, I will have another opportunity to gather and put up applesauce. If not, I know that the lesson the Lord intended for me is infinitely more valuable.

—A sister in Christ