“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.” Galatians 5:22 NKJV
Welcome to the 29th Weekly Devotional Recap of the Year. This week, we learnt about the fruits of the Spirit: Love, Joy, Peace and Patience; and how to live them out in our day-to-day life.
Monday’s devotional introduced us to the fruit of the spirit. Before Salvation, we were slaves to sin and bore fruits according to our sinful nature (Romans 6:20). However, through the Holy Spirit we received at Salvation, we are now able to bear fruits of righteousness (Galatians 5:16). We ought to show forth love, peace, joy, long-suffering, goodness and kindness. To do so, we must yield to the work of the Spirit in us.
Tuesday’s devotional encouraged us to walk in love, as love was the hallmark of Christ’s earthly ministry. Love is a fruit of our born-again spirit and a core part of our Christian walk (Galatians 5:22). When we walk in love, walking in other fruits of the Spirit becomes easy. God wants us to walk in love towards all men by giving, praying for, and preaching the Gospel to them.
On Wednesday, we learnt to be full of joy because joy to a believer is not just a feeling, it is our nature (Psalms 32:11). The believer’s joy comes from revelation and not our experiences – good or bad. We have eternal life, and that’s more than enough reason to rejoice.
Even in prison, Apostle Paul rejoiced and encouraged others to do the same (Philippians 4:4). In the presence of God, there is fullness of joy, and we are joyful always because we carry His presence (Psalm 16:1).
Thursday’s article admonished us to have peace despite the storms. Peace is not the absence of troubles but the presence of calmness and assurance in God regardless of what is happening (Galatians 5:22). You can remain peaceful by saturating your heart with God’s word and praying regularly. Through fellowship with God, your spirit gains ascendancy over your flesh, and you see things how God would (Philippians 4:6-7).
Finally, on Friday, we learnt to be patient. Patience requires us to trust God and be committed to waiting on Him even when things don’t appear to be going according to plan. We can show patience with people that we reach out to with the message of the Gospel. When we are patient, we trust in God’s will and God’s time. We see an example in Jesus Christ, who was already teaching at age 12 but waited until age 30 to start His ministry (Luke 2: 49-51).
The fruits of the spirit are evidence of God’s work in our lives. No matter what we face, we ought to yield to the Spirit to enable us to show forth fruits in line with our nature.
Have a great weekend!
Bible Reading Plan: Psalms 38, 41-42