About Bearing Good Fruit
Bearing Good Fruit (BGF) is a faith-based website dedicated to helping others live out their lives bearing good fruit. We publish blog posts about family & motherhood, faith, and wellness. We also offer customized illustrations designed to portray the beauty of Catholicism lived out, the joy of family life, and the Lord’s abundant little blessings.
In our world today, it can be difficult to be a bearer of good fruit. We all experience periods of barrenness in our lives—times during which we feel like we have nothing to offer. These challenging periods can be brought on by spending too much time in secular environments that take our focus off of God. These are the places in which our spiritual roots wither.
…some seeds fell by the way side, and the birds came and devoured them: and others fell upon the rocky places, where they had not much earth: and straightway they sprang up, because they had no deepness of earth: and when the sun was risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And others fell upon the thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked them: and others fell upon the good ground, and yielded fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He that has ears, let him hear.
Matthew 13: 3-9
What can we do to ensure our environment is facilitating our spiritual growth? Spend your time in places that permit and encourage you to focus on God.
Bearing Good Fruit is a place where you can tend to the soil of your soul. A place where you can discover the gifts God has planted in you, nurture them, and bring them above the surface to bloom. God is calling all of us, including you, to bear good fruit.
When we enter into a relationship with Christ, the Holy Spirit is able to form in us the first fruits of eternal glory (CCC 1832). The fruits of the Holy Spirit allow us to become more Christ-like. By them, we are strengthened in our ability to reject the desires of our human flesh that are opposed to a Christian life.
In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ have crucified their flesh with its passion and desires.
Galatians 5: 22-24
Some Helpful Notes for Readers
Bible Translations:
All quoted bible verses are from the New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE) or the Contemporary English Version (CEV) Bible. Both of these translations are approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
What is CCC:
CCC stands for Catechism of the Catholic Church. You’ll see text quoted from the CCC in many of the posts on this website. The full Catechism is available online here.
According to the USCCB, “a catechism is a text which contains the fundamental Christian truths formulated in a way that facilitates their understanding.” The CCC explains the fundamentals of the Catholic faith in plain language that is easy to comprehend and useful for teaching.
Affiliate Linking:
BGF participates in affiliate and promotional programs that financially support the operation of this website. As an Amazon Associate, BGF will earn from qualifying purchases. We appreciate your support when you shop through our links.
About the Author
Hi, I’m Isabella. Here’s a little bit about me and why I started BGF.
I’m a Catholic woman, wife, and mother striving to live a fruitful life. I started BGF so that I could share the gifts and talents God has given me with others.
Discovering our God-given gifts is a challenge. Figuring out what exactly God wants us to do with them is another!
I don’t have the type of talent that can be showcased on a stage, like singing, dancing, or standup comedy. I did well in school, but I didn’t graduate valedictorian. I enjoy sports, but I’m not a star athlete. I wondered for a long time, what were God’s plans for me if I had no extraordinary ability?
What I didn’t know then was that WE ALL have something to offer. God has created each of us with unique gifts. They might not appear in the form of “talent” per se, but as gifts of the Spirit. You may be gifted in serving the needy or in showing generosity to those who have little. These are the extraordinary gifts we should seek to discover in ourselves.
As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
1 Peter 4: 10
My prayer is that sharing my words, my stories, and my faith will help you grow closer to Christ. Because what better way to figure out what our gifts are than to get to know the one who created us?
God led me to discover my gift for words in high school after an encouraging English teacher suggested I pursue writing. I knew I loved writing before then, as I was constantly prayer journaling and writing poetry, but I’d never considered it to be my calling. It turned out my teacher was onto something.
With my teacher’s encouragement, I decided to pursue a Bachelor’s in English and then a Master’s in Technical Communication. After that, it was off to the races! I was making a healthy salary as a technical writer/editor. I really enjoyed my work. However, I felt that God was asking me to do something different.
After about six years in the professional workplace, I discovered the Catholic blogosphere and felt called to contribute. At the same time in my personal life, I was being called to tend to my family with greater care. Much of that had to do with giving birth to my first child.
Following months of discernment, prayer, and discussion with my husband, I left my full-time job to stay at home with my daughter and started BGF. It was a terrifying and exciting leap of faith. God reached down to our family during that transitional time to plant new seeds in our hearts that would eventually bring new direction, projects, people, and vocations into our lives.
Some of those seeds have already bloomed, and some I am still eagerly awaiting for God to raise up. Thank you for joining me on this journey!