Fruit not Fruits

Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

The fruit of the Spirit isn’t fruits.

By the time you read this, I will have talked to a group of moms and daughters at Woodland Lakes Christian Camp. A while back, Amy, the director of Mother/Daughter camp asked me if I would put together a devotion to share about the fruit of the Spirit.

As I’ve searched for the words and examples to share, I remembered my realization that the “fruit” is not “fruits.” As a child I thought the word was plural, like there were nine different fruits standing on their own. As an adult, I realized I was wrong.

Now I see the fruit of the Spirit like an apple. When I purchase an apple at the grocery store or orchard, I have one whole piece of fruit in my hand. I bring it home and cut it into pieces. Is the apple multiple fruits now? No it’s still one apple, just with several slices.

The fruit of the Spirit is like the apple, one fruit with many pieces. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control are all part of the same fruit. As a follower of Jesus, I need to nurture all aspects of the fruit of the Spirit. If I seek peace and joy, without kindness, my fruit spoils. If I try to be good and faithful, but lose my self-control, my fruit rots. God has given his children this amazing gift through the Holy Spirit, and I long to embrace all the fruit and make them a constant in my life.

God calls His children to live with all nine segments of fruit. He knows the world needs all of these and as Christians we are the ones to inject love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control into all aspects of our lives.

Take the challenge to actively live by the fruit of the Spirit and share God’s gift with the world.

Three Things That Help Me Through Life

Three things I cling to in times of trouble—joy, patience, and faithfulness.

Without joy—life is bleak.
With joy—I have hope.

Without patience—life can drive me crazy.
With patience—affliction is tolerable.

Without faithfulness—I fall apart.
With faithfulness—I can go to God in prayer.

 Romans 12:12

Faithfulness: A Lesson from the Dog

2 Thessalonians 3:3
But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.

Several years ago, when Tater was still an exuberant young dog, he caused me to take a trip to the emergency room. I had hooked him up to take him for a walk and before I could follow him out the door, he bolted and ran me straight into the door jam. I met the jam head on, stumbled out the doorway and passed out in the back yard. In a few minutes I came to. My glasses were flung behind me, pain screamed from my broken nose, and my dear dog stood over me wondering what had just happened. Long story short—Tim took me to the emergency room for a few stitches. A few years later, I tripped over this same dog and injured both knees. Eventually leading to knee surgery and replacement. By now you may be wondering why I still love this dog. One simple reason, he's faithful. He loves me more than I understand, and I love him right back. He's a nervous Nelly sometimes and drives me crazy when he jumps and barks when I get home. But he's my dog.

That must be how God looks at me. "She's my child." Otherwise why would he be faithful to me, a messy life-liver who gets sick, makes mistakes, gets scared, acts anxious, and sometimes wants to give up. That's the thing about God, he loves me anyway. He remains faithful and protects me from evil because I sure can't protect myself. He gives me strength when I'm about to let loose of the proverbial knot at the end of the rope. I'm thankful that no matter what happens, God remains faithful. He's the same no matter what. And I know without doubt that I will remain faithful to him. 

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Wednesday Wisdom