"Fruits That Grow In Vulnerability"

In Henri J.M. Nouwen's book "Bread for the Journey," he says "There is a great difference between successfulness and fruitfulness. Success comes from strength, control, and respectability. A successful person has the energy to create something, to keep control over its development, and to make it available in large quantities. Success brings many rewards and often fame. Fruits, however, come from weakness and vulnerability. And fruits are unique. A child is the fruit conceived in vulnerability, community is the fruit born through shared brokenness, and intimacy is the fruit that grows through touching one another's wounds. Let's remind one another that what brings us true joy is not successfulness but fruitfulness."

My thoughts:
Relationships are built on vulnerability. We must lay our life and our desires down for another, remove all walls, risk being hurt and hurting by ours and others' humanness... With this said and in the light of this devotional above, relationships should not be measured by successfulness, but rather fruitfulness. In today's society, if you stick with your mate and seem happy, your marriage is a success. But what is a success other than 'control', 'mass results measured by humans', 'respectability', 'strength'? Marriage shouldn't be about these things, but rather selflessness, putting all other agendas aside, about nurturing, caring for, unconditional love, focus on God and the spread of His Word and glory. Marriage should be fruitful, not successful. Marriage should be grounded and centered on God and living for Him; not on control, temporary and immediate gratification. Marriage is not to further ourselves, but rather to share God with others, to lift up our spouse, to allow God to shine through us; male and female, unique and yet together as one. Marriage is about sharing and encouraging in each other's weakness and strengths, joys and sorrows, worries and peace. Marriage is God's way of seeing Him more completely. God doesn't need us to control and be successful, He needs us to serve and be fruitful.

The challenge of course is how to be fruitful, how to push our humanness aside and embrace God's calling. This is what I see as the challenge of marriage and all relationships. This is what I pray I learn. To serve w/o wanting to be served. To love to the fullest knowing my contentment comes from God and God alone. These are my thoughts and challenges I pray I learn with each blessing of a new day.