Good Morning Girls!  This morning I would like to talk to you a little about the sweetsop.  What is a sweetsop you ask?  A sweetsop is a rare and exotic fruit.  It is very hard to find, and very vulnerable.  It requires high humidity to grow.  You know, the kind of humidity that has you sweating like crazy, gasping for air, and thirsting for water.  It is vulnerable because it has a shallow root system and is frost sensitive.  The roots are also easily affected by fungi when damaged or waterlogged.  It is best to prune back long branches and thin the center.  You need to feed it regularly in order for it to grow.  After planting, the first crop generally takes 3 years.  Grafting is recommended.  For those of you who do not know what grafting means, it simply means to join with another growing plant by placing them in close contact.  It is difficult to transport this fruit because it softens rapidly and breaks down internally.  Many complain that there are too many seeds.
So here's how I got to reading about the sweetsop.  On Saturday night Pastor Mac was talking about how to identify for ourselves that in the parable of the sower, we fall into the fourth example.  The one who hears and accepts God's word and produces a harvest of 30, 60, or even 100 fold.  He said we should not look at the end result, meaning we should not look at our bank balance, our relationships, or our health report as evidence of our faith.  Instead, we are to look at the fruit.  The fruit being the qualities listed in Galatians 5:22.  The fruit listed there is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.
I turned to my friend and pointed at the word patience.  I whispered "this is some rare and exotic fruit".  She added "the kind that doesn't last long".  At the time, I was just trying to be funny (yeah, I make jokes during church), but later I started thinking about it again.  In all seriousness, it does seem at times that patience is a rare and exotic fruit.  One that we read about or see pictures of, but never have for ourselves.  It also seems like the other fruits are difficult to maintain if we lack patience.  To me it seems like the root of all our tests and trials is patience.  We need to be patient with others to walk in love.  We need to be patient in all situations to have peace and joy.  We need to be patient in the grocery line to act kind to others.  We need patience in our circumstance to extend a hand to others.  We need patience with those we work and interact with in order to remain faithful.  We need patience with our children to stay gentle.  And finally we need patience in all things in order to maintain our self control!
It is no surprise to me that the fruit that affects all the others, the one that can easily "upset the fruit basket", is often the most difficult to harvest.  I think I can learn a lesson or two from the sweetsop.  I can keep cool in the uncomfortable humidity by seeking the Lord for his living water to quench my thirst.  I can try to keep my roots from being attacked by the devil fungi.  I can allow the Lord to prune my branches.  I can graft myself to other believers who are more developed in this area and can help me grow.  Once I reap the harvest, I will not leave the One who developed me, as surely I will once again breakdown internally due to all of the seeds that enemy tries to place in me.
So Girls, the harvest may seem long in coming, but trust me, it will.  And when it does, it will be gloriously beautiful and sweet to the soul- just like the sweetsop..........

Galatians 5:22 The the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.

Love you all you little sweetsops-

Jen