Fruitfulness is Better Than Productivity.

**Note: please click here to read the full devotional. What’s below is an excerpt from the original published by (in)courage.

Zero fruit. My tree had zero fruit. I’d had grand hopes for the satsuma tree in our backyard garden, dreaming of the sweet, juicy citrus fruit it would bear. As the cool days of November drifted into our otherwise warm and humid coastal Texas climate, however, I realized there was no fruit to be found. Exactly zero satsumas. You’d think I would have noticed the lack of fruit long before picking season, but I have a bit of a brown thumb so I’m usually enjoying the garden from the safe distance of the porch, snuggled up with coffee and a book, or perched with a laptop for an afternoon Zoom meeting.

Suddenly, I panicked. What happened to the tree? Aren’t satsumas tough and low maintenance? I know we didn’t prune too much because that would require actual maintenance, and we just aren’t garden maintenance people. That’s why we only keep hardy plants, the kind sturdy enough to fend for themselves most of the time – like the satsuma. Still, I wondered: did we unknowingly harm it?

A quick internet search revealed a profound truth: trees overloaded with fruit in previous years get worn out, and from time to time, they decide to take a year off to recover.

Come to think of it, last year’s fruit harvest was almost overwhelming. We bagged countless satsumas and gifted them to every person we could think of. Now, our tree was growing and healthy, boasting vibrant deep green leaves and strong branches—just no visible fruit. A wasted season? Not at all. It was a necessary season, and the tree knew it.

No tree bears fruit year-round, and the seasons without visible fruit are just as valuable. After all, those dormant seasons are where the deep, behind-the-scenes work of rest and growth and maturity occur. An appearance of lack now will produce an abundance when it’s time.

Jesus had plenty to say about garden rhythms as well. During his last conversation with the disciples before the crucifixion, Jesus, said, “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples” (John 15:8 NIV). Every part of creation ultimately exists for the glory of God, and when we are immensely fruitful, He receives all the glory for the abundance. Yet, He clarifies: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5 NIV).

To use Jesus’ illustration, the very nature of alive branches requires continuous connection to the vine. The vine pushes life and nourishment through the branch, and in due season, the result is fruit. The cultivation of fruit in our lives is His work, but my calendar-driven, task-loving, achievement-seeking self tends to live as if it’s mine, forgetting just how dependent I really am on Him and instead relying on my ability to get things done. It’s easy to confuse productivity with fruitfulness. While, in truth, on our own, we can be incredibly busy yet not fruitful.