Bearing Fruit

Heart Prep

Dear God, help me to identify the fruit of the Spirit in my life.
Lead me so that I may bear “fruit” of a Christ-centered heart.

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

As humans, we have this "natural flesh" thing that makes us prone to sin. We might even use it as an excuse. We might say to someone, "I'm only human," or something along those lines, when we find ourselves in a bind. I have often been in situations where I let my "human side" get the better of me: maybe there was an argument that I just "had" to win, and I wasn’t very nice about it; maybe I made someone feel bad because they hurt my feelings; maybe I chose to purposely say harsh words to my friends because they did something I didn’t like. I’m sure you've been there. Throughout my life, I can't even tell you how many times I have found myself in situations that just seemed unfair! I felt like I was the "right" one in the situation, and everyone else was "wrong". And it's fine to feel "right", but not if we don't choose the “right” actions, and not if it’s just our pride or stubbornness getting in the way. The verse for today tells us what the fruit of the Spirit is. As I am developing my relationships and friendships, I have to constantly remind myself of these fruits. Am I allowing the Spirit of God to grow these fruits in my life? We live in a sinful world, and we will always have hurts and hang-ups. Not every day is going to be the best day of our life. That's okay. My job, and yours, is to make sure that we don't have a really bad fruit growing in our heart, squeezing out the fruit of the Spirit. So, as you go about your day in this broken world where we live, check your fruit. What fruit are you displaying today?

Life Application

What fruit of the Spirit do I want to display?  

What do I need to yield to the Spirit so that His fruit will grow in me?  My mouth, will, determination, pride, aggression, self-indulgence, impulsiveness, bitterness, hatred, anger, meanness, vocabulary?  

As I think about each one, is there anything else I need to add to the list?

What is God saying to me?