the fruit of the Spirit...

In the New Testament in Galatians 5:22 it says "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. As I read this earlier in the week it struck me that, as believers of Jesus Christ, this is the fruit we will produce in our lives. What delicious fruit! But, what difficult fruit to produce.

I'm reading a novel at the moment in which one of the characters is called Lovely. It's easy to love the Lovelies and it's easy to be patient and kind and gentle when things are going well. But what about the Unlovelies in our lives? They are much more difficult to love, to be patient with, to be kind to. And when life is tough the long list of fruit seems impossible.

There are many magazines and books that currently offer solutions for good things in your life, your soul, and life transformation but all of these rely on self help. Jesus, however, tells us "I am the vine; you are the branches.Those who remain in Me, and I in them will produce much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing." John 15:5 . Our focus is to be on Jesus Christ - concentrating on Him, getting to know Him better and spending time with Him. Mary came and sat as Jesus feet and listened to Him. This is what Jesus said of Mary: "but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." I love how Jesus reassures us that spending time with Him will be protected and that if we stay in Him, He stays in us too and then He will produce the fruit.

Spend some time this week with Jesus Christ. Find time to talk to Him about any issues or relationships that are troubling you. Sit at His feet and open up a Bible and hear the words that He speaks. If you're not sure where to start, begin with the Gospel of John in the New Testament. Begin living with Him now. "The one thing I ask of the Lord, the thing I seek most, is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord's perfections and meditating in his temple." Psalm 27:4 NLT