An apple a day

About eight years ago for an in-class high school writing assignment, our teacher placed a bowl of apples at the front of the classroom and told us to write a poem describing them. After thirty minutes, he asked for a few volunteers to read their compositions aloud. Each one spoke to the vibrant color and amazing aesthetics, even using words like “tempting” and “perfect”. For a bowl of my least favorite green apples, I must admit they did look good. That is, until he turned the bowl around to reveal that the apples had bites taken from them, were browning and had been hacked with a knife in areas.

Things are not always as they appear.
In fact, rarely is a first impression or a quick judgment accurate.

At the time, I wanted to apply this little life lesson to others, believing that it was everyone else with the mask. I wanted to conclude that things aren’t always how they appear in other’s lives. However, the lesson I took away that day was one of deep conviction, hitting a chord deeper than any green apple should strike within me.

I’m the apple, and it’s hard to admit. From the classroom to the office, in my friendships and even in my blogging, I like to present myself as colorful, vibrant and whole. But the truth is I have been wounded. I have dirty patches. I have missing pieces.

I thank God for His patience with me. He is the one that is at work in me to heal, clean and make me whole.

I can be so eager to portray myself as a whole apple so that others are impressed that it causes me to ignore the work God is doing, and his priorities in my life.

"Mark 4 // We are more impressed with the fruit. Not God - He's watching over the roots. We like the product; He emphasizes the process." -James Liira

I am not a lone apple in a bowl. I am intricately connected to the tree that gives life and allows me to keep growing and learning. God is working in my life and speaking to me, even when I may not be so sure. He works and speaks in yours too. Broken and marred as I am, there is more going on than I see, and that is a wonderful thing.

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.:.