What God outlines as the fruit of the Spirit are essentially the characteristics of a person who walks with the Spirit of God.

 

Beautiful words, beautiful character traits. But difficult to maintain every day, in every season.

 

Lord, how do I love those who hurt me? How am I to be joyful when everything is going wrong? Is it even possible to have peace when I have so many questions? The list goes on …

 

In my earlier walk with Christ, I resolved to live out everything this scripture outlined. I was determined to love, but I wasn’t getting it right. I pretended to have peace while lying awake at night mulling over worries. I forced a faithful approach to everything and faced burnout as I operated at 110% in my own strength.

 

In my own strength.

 

That was the problem. These traits – love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control – are fruits: something that grows from the tree, not the other way around. A sweet, juicy apple doesn’t just appear – it is produced by the tree.

 

The source of these fruits is the Holy Spirit. Just like an apple cannot exist apart from the tree, we cannot produce these character traits apart from the Spirit.

 

This frees us from the weight of trying to love someone difficult on our own. We can love, be kind, have peace, joy, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control – not by our own strength, but because the Holy Spirit dwells within us. Just as an apple tree produces fruit naturally, the Spirit produces these traits in us.

 

Oh, amazing love, that God would give us his Spirit to produce these fruits and not expect it in our own strength!

 

God’s love and the Spirit, when we abide in him, produce beautiful fruit through his power. You are kind because you have God. You can love unconditionally because you know God. You can be faithful because he is. You can soften this harsh world with your kindness and gentleness because he equips you.

 

You are magnificently created to bear good, glorious fruit that blesses others and glorifies God. You are chosen. You are deeply loved, child of God.

 

Prayer: Thank you, God, for giving us your Spirit. Abide in me, so that I can produce good fruit that reflects your love to others. Amen.