Cultivating Good Fruit
“But the fruit of the Sprit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23
Have you ever wished or even prayed for more patience or self-control? If you have kids, you probably pray for those things daily. However, when you ask Jesus into your heart, you receive the fruit of the Spirit as seeds. They then need to be cultivated and grown in the soil of your heart. Jesus told a parable about the types of soil in Mark 4:3-8. The soil types are: 1) The path 2) Stony ground 3) Thorn infested 4) Good ground.
Of course, the best soil to be is the good ground. Those are Christians who spend time daily cultivating their hearts by reading the Bible and spending time in prayer. They don’t just go to church when convenient, but hearing the Word is a priority. Those people will find the fruit of the Spirit growing in their lives. They will see God moving in ways they never thought possible because they prepared themselves to receive all that God has to offer.
I would hope that you have cultivated the soil of your heart to be good ground. However, if we’re honest, most of us have thorn-infested ground. The seed can get in there, but the busyness of life pulls our attention away from spending quality time with God. I recently heard about a little kids basketball tournament scheduled on Easter weekend. Really?? We live in a society quickly choking out any time to go to church and hear the Word.
Let’s be mindful of cultivating our hearts and taking part in the fruit of the Spirit that the Lord has provided for us to grow in. Make your plans for your week, but be sure to schedule your time with God weekly and daily. We would all agree that we could use more love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control in our lives. Amen?
Check out this blog on What Kind of Fruit are You Producing?
Dear Lord, thank you for the fruit of the Spirit you have provided for me in the form of seeds in my life. Help me to grow those seeds into mature fruit for your glory. Amen.
