Another week! Wow. Last week went by so fast! This just comes to show that time is nothing - each day is a gift from God and we had better use it as wisely as we can. We never know when it may be our last! Thankfully God is rich in grace and mercy and has blessed us with life so far. Thank You, LORD!
The verses I want to write about today is Galatians 5:22-26 which says: "But the Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another."
I want to go through each of the Fruit of the Spirit. Perhaps we'll find that each and every one of us find it difficult to display these in our lives. I know I have trouble. But we aren't perfect; therefore we can't live a perfect life. But, with the Spirit of God living in us, we should try to be better than the rest of the world. Only through His help can we better ourselves.
Love: I'm sure everybody knows what love is. But how does the Bible define love? 1 John 3:16 says that "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." I think that should explain it. Jesus Christ loved us so much that He died us. Isn't that amazing? Our love should be the same. We should love each other (yes, including our families) so much that we would be willing to die for them. That, in my opinion, is true love. Everyday, in our actions and words, we ought to try to show our love for those around us. I'm not meaning that we go around telling everybody we love them so much that we would die for them! No, that would probably seem absurd. But we still need to show our love. Simple & sweet should be our motto. A hug, a smile, a thoughtful gesture, even just doing little things for your loved ones shows that you really care. We should all have a loving spirit, even though I know sometimes it is hard. I go through it everyday. Most times I don't do what I should. That is why I am writing this. I am hoping that it will be beneficial to you, but I also need the encouragement. Writing sometimes helps me to get a better focus on things.
Joy: Are we as Christians to go around and mope all the time? Of course not! We are to be joyful - rejoicing in all the blessings God has given us! Webster's 1828 dictionary defines joy as "to gladden; to exhilarate. To enjoy..." We are to have joy in our hearts. God calls us to be ambassadors of Him; therefore we should try our best to show forth Him in the best way possible!
Peace: Also as Christians we are not to hold grudges or keep striving with others. Jesus himself had many a man throw anger in His face, yet He remained calm and cool in the midst of it all. He should be out #1 example to follow. In every conflict we go through we should try to imitate Him by having peace with our fellow man. Peace is very important. The opposite is strife, discontent, and unhappiness. No one in his/her right mind wants that.
Longsuffering: is defined as "long endurance; patience of offense." We are to bear with our fellow man's imperfectness and mistakes. We are ourselves want everyone else to bear with us. We want everybody to overlook our faults and mistakes. I think the Golden Rule comes into play, doesn't it? We should think of everything in life that way, but especially in how we treat others. Treating others the way we want to be treated should be our motto in regard to others.
Gentleness: Meekness, calmness, sweetness, mildness of temper, softness of answer and reproof: all describe gentleness. I doubt we have to look this word up in a dictionary. We all know it; therefore we should follow it. In every moment that we feel like biting "that person's" head off, think of the Fruit of the Spirit. Would Jesus have done that? Would He have approved?
Goodness: Everyone wants to be treated with kindness, with goodness. Everyone, also, needs the goodness of Jesus Christ in their lives. Only He can fill that void. No one on earth is "good." Isn't that what Jesus told the rich young ruler? Only God is good. But we can strive to be more like Him in every way. We will never be perfect, but with His help, we can overcome the low expectations of the world and try to be more like Him.
Faith: Our faith needs to rest only in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. Without Him we are nothing. Our faith needs to rest in Him. His grace is all-sufficient. He has bestowed so many things upon us. Shouldn't we give Him the glory, praise, and honor He deserves?
Meekness: Instead of pride, let us have humbleness. Instead of arrogance, let us have gentleness. Instead of anger, let us have forbearance. That is the way Jesus would have us to be, just as He was. A lot of times I let myself get blown away by the moment and get very angry with "someone." That, of course, isn't right. But I am very impatient. Impatience is my middle name. =) That, along with many other areas, is something I need to work on. Meekness should be my goal. What about you?
Temperance: means moderation, restraint, patience, etc. I know I really need to work on this one. It has patience in it. As with all the Fruit of the Spirit, this is very important. We shouldn't go overboard by getting angry, not restraining ourselves, and losing our tempers. After all, we are young ladies. That sure doesn't become us. We should imitate Christ in all He did. The best way is to read the Scriptures - to find out for ourselves how He behaved in every situation. We sure could learn a lot!
By the way, I've changed my blog colors and template. Since there are so many different styles, I've decided to change them about every now and then. Make a little bit of change once in awhile! :D
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