Are You Cultivating a Cursed Fig Tree?

And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, "May no fruit ever come from you again!" And the fig tree withered at once.(Mat 21:19 ESV)

I was talking to one of my best friends the other day and he asked how I was doing.  You see I consider this close friend to be my Barnabas.  Someone that I can confide in and someone who will listen to me vent and will also tell me the truth when I need to hear it. Well I was having a particularly tough day and I began to unload some frustrations.  As I was speaking I suddenly realized that the things that I was frustrated about were not going to change in the foreseeable future and I was wasting my time getting angry and worrying about them.  At the same time I believe that the Holy Spirit dropped a thought into my head.  He reminded me of the Fig Tree that Jesus had cursed when he was hungry along the roadside.  I realized that I was trying to cultivate that dead fig tree.  I was fertilizing that dead tree and trying to get it to produce fruit even though Jesus said that that tree would never produce fruit again.  

By complaining and getting angry about things that are out of my control, I was trying to bring that dead, cursed tree back to life.  Once Jesus cursed that tree, that was it.  It was over and that tree would never produce fruit again.  Complaining and criticizing and getting frustrated and angry won't bring that tree back to life and it sure won't produce any GOOD fruit.  You are wasting your time trying to cultivate that dead, cursed tree.

When you get frustrated are you cultivating that cursed fig tree?  Are you trying to get something dead to produce fruit?  Forget about it and cast all your cares on Him.  He will lighten the load and He will show you where to plant and to cultivate and to reap the GOOD fruit. If you do not currently have a Paul or a Barnabas in your life, start looking for one now.  Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to bring you together with a friend that will listen to you and help you to listen to the sweet voice of the Holy Spirit when He speaks and reminds you of the good fertile ground and to stop wasting your valuable time on the dead trees.

The Vision for MOTM

Over two years ago I met with a group of male friends and we began to discuss the Man’s role in the church today.  During the discussion we discovered that we had the same view on what a Godly man should be and we also came to the conclusion that many men in today’s world are walking away from God, their wives, their children and the church in ever increasing numbers.  As a group we decided that something needs to be done and we came up with Men on the Move.

We decided to call this ministry Men on the Move because we believe that men need to be taught how to be “On the Move” with God, their wives and children, in the church and in the community.  Not living a stagnant, boring life without purpose and fulfillment but living in the fullness of the Holy Spirit and accomplishing what God has called them to do and be.  Our Mission is to Disciple, Equip and Encourage Men to be Godly Men, Godly Husbands, Godly Fathers and Godly examples in their daily lives.

We will accomplish our Mission through discipleship groups led by a minimum of two on fire for God, Spirit Filled leaders per group.  These groups will be geographically located around the state and will meet on a regular basis to fellowship, study the Word and volunteer in the communities that they live in.  We will also hold “Worship in the Wilderness” twice a year.  One held in the spring and one in the fall.  This will be a Men only event (Older Boys can attend as well) with fellowship, worship, teaching and fun and games out away from the concrete jungle and hustle and bustle of everyday life.  It will be a Friday night, Saturday and Sunday morning schedule with a Holy Spirit led evening service around a council fire on Saturday night.  We will also volunteer our money and our time in the communities that we live in.  We will be servants led by servant leaders.  If there are families in need, MOTM will dig in and help them.  With home and car repairs, lawn maintenance or what ever is needed.  MOTM will get it done.

If this ministry speaks to you then climb aboard.  We can use you.  We will use this blog as a means of communication and will soon develop a website and email distribution list to get the word out.  We will also need volunteers to start and lead the local discipleship groups.  If you are interested in becoming a leader, please pray about it and let me know.  Someone will be in contact with you to set up a telephone interview and maybe a face to face to discuss your calling.  We will also be putting together a training session for the group leaders so that everyone will be on the same page.

Give me some feedback.  Comments are welcome on the blog and through my personal email which is cmdrkeef@att.net.  Email the blog link to all of your male friends.  Let’s get the ball rolling and make this Vision a Reality.  Remember God needs men to stand up and be the men that He has called us to be.  Be in prayer concerning your role and God Bless you and your family.