And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.

--Parallel verses:
‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6‬:‭7‬-‭10‬
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

As I write this devotional I am surrounded by my backyard plants and flowers.  Every year we cut the plants back.  The trees lose their leaves in the fall. And the next spring they come back again, bigger and stronger and able to produce more. This year, our fruit-producing pear tree had so many pear buds and new branches. I had to prune it or it would not have produced quality fruit. I snipped off a third of the pear starts and threw them away.

I just finished watching the Karate Kid movies with my sick son, I, II, and III.  And one thing has stuck with me after watching Karate Kid III: the bonsai tree analogy. The storyline goes that Mr. Miyagi brought a Bonsai tree back from Okinawa. He planted it in a remote area of a cliff, so it wouldn’t be stolen. He and Daniel went into a Bonsai tree business together, but some hoodlums tore up their store and stole their trees. So Daniel went to find the valuable tree, to try and save the business. He had some problems and the small tree trunk ended up split with saltwater getting in the roots. It looked like it might die. And Mr. Miyagi told him it might just survive because the tree had strong roots. And it did, after binding the trunk, the broken trunk healed, and the tree survived and they replanted it.

Sometimes in life, my soul can feel like a battered and broken tree, with a split trunk and damaged roots. But God is faithful and he will restore me and heal the hurting places of my heart. I just need to focus on his truth and his ways and build strong roots by doing his good works.  Good works are works that God prepares in advance for me to do. He knows all and prepares the path of right living for me to travel down. I just have to decide that I will trust him and follow him.   

The good works build a solid root system for me to weather the storms of life. The Bible, God’s Word, is my food, along with prayer to him, that gives me spiritual energy to do his good works. Then people see my heart change and the fruits that I produce: love, patience, joy, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, meekness, perseverance, forgiveness, and self control. 

What Paul is saying here is to never tire of doing good. He is referencing the process by which I put my heart in a mindset to follow through so I can see the good works he has prepared for me in advance to do — and then, do them! 

Sow good seeds, build good roots, and reap good fruit!

Thank you, Lord, for this excellent encouragement to persist in doing good. You ask us to do this because you know that we will reap the great rewards you have provided for those who are faithful to follow and do good works. I breathe in your goodness and truth, and I exhale all of the fear and disappointment that can get me down. Today, you are my primary focus, and I will see and accomplish the good works you have laid in advance for me to do.