September 15: Weekly Reading- Teaching on Trees and Their Fruit; The Vigilant & Insight Post by Kim Feld

  -   September 15, 2025

Good Trees Bear Good Fruit: Jesus teaches that a tree is known by its fruit, emphasizing that true believers produce actions that reflect their faith. Our character is revealed by the way we live, showing whether we are aligned with God’s will.

Monday Verse

May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ—for this will bring much glory and praise to God. Philippians 1:11 (NLT)

Monday Questions

What kind of fruit is my life producing? How can I cultivate more of the fruit of the Spirit in my daily actions?

Monday Insight Post
by Kim Feld

I’ve felt the stress of life more than usual lately. My parents are getting older (as am I!), and illness is becoming more frequent. Life is challenging on many fronts right now, making these passages resonate deeply as I reflect on what I’m storing up in my heart to get me through tough times. 

Pressure is a good test for how solid something is. Making that personal, pressure can show us how much we are relying on and allowing the Holy Spirit to change and grow us. Jesus said that what comes out of our mouths shows what’s in our hearts. That’s sobering, but it serves as a good litmus test for our spiritual state. When I allow busyness or distractions to interfere with intentional time with Jesus, I can tell by my thoughts and what I say, or at least am tempted to say. Being in constant contact with Him is crucial for me to be the woman He created me to be. I just can’t do it on my own, and spoiler alert, neither can you. 

You are probably familiar with the phrase “Garbage in, garbage out.” This means that in any system, the output is impacted by the input. If the input is good, the output will follow. This idea is also true in our spiritual lives. If we are filling our hearts and minds with things that point us to Jesus, the fruit of the Holy Spirit that we have received as a deposit will flourish and grow. The opposite is also true.

When I am stressed and have a lot on my plate, often the things that make me the healthiest are the first things I cut. I know better, but I can easily move into “tyranny of the urgent” mode. I may be working harder and faster, but I certainly am not working better. God has given us limits as human beings, and if we don’t respect them, it’s to our detriment. All aspects of our health matter – physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. Jesus modeled wellness in all these areas, and if we are following Him, He is our example. 

I know many of you are facing hard things right now. What if we took Jesus up on His invitation to bring all our cares and burdens to Him and allow Him to give us rest? What if we didn’t try to carry it all on our own and allowed Him to make deposits of truth, peace, and love in hearts so that we could draw from them? His word tells us to guard our hearts above all else, for it determines the course of our lives (Proverbs 4:23). 

Soak these words in today:

²⁸ Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.³⁰ For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)

Kim Feld
Executive Director of Education and Outreach

New Hope Church
Lorton, Virginia
www.newhope.org