We have been enjoying the company of Steven, Celinda and CeeCee this afternoon.  Celinda has been busy ‘raiding’ the garden and processing tomatoes.  She will have several quarts of salsa and tomato sauce to take back home.

We were a little short on some of the fruit and Carla mentioned it at work – one of her co-workers volunteered to let her raid their garden.  She did so and came back with two baskets of some beautiful fruit.  So Carla’s generosity this spring with her tomato plants came back to her in the form of about 30 pounds of tomatoes!

Turned out to be a pretty day on this side of the mountains today, Steven said on the other side, up where they live, it was pouring and the freeway, for a while, was a challenge because of it.   

Galatians 5:22-25 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

²³ Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

²⁴ And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

²⁵ If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

I pray that I could at least match up to one of those fruits; yet it is so hard.

We live in a world of chaos and confusion.  We live in a world of envy and strife.  We live in a world where hatred is one of the most dominant emotions.  Distrust of everyone, questioning every motive.  Everywhere we look there is turmoil and we can’t seem to avoid it. 

The world is floundering in an ocean of sin and we are in the midst; on a raft called salvation and we feel threatened as the waves try to crash over us.

Long time preachers, who were looked upon as the spiritual leaders of our faith are failing in their faith and obligations.  They are falling in disgrace, some admitting and asking for forgiveness, others refusing to confess their sins.

They are human.  We are human, how can we measure up to the standards God has set for us?  How can we run the race as Paul, and the other Apostles ran it?  How can we stay true and millions of Christians have through the last 2000 years, and the Jews for thousands of years before that?

We have accepted Christ so we know our salvation is secure as we rest in Him, but how do we live for Him in today’s world?  How do we get past our frustrations and anger against those that strike out against us?

We have the spirit of God dwelling within us, we believe that God reigns supreme in the universe and in our life, but how do we produce these fruits?

Love; we love God, we love our family and friends.  How do we get past the anger of those that strike out at us, those that are killing people in the name of a false religion?  How do we show our love so it produces fruit and brings others to Him?

Joy, the joy of our salvation can produce fruit by showing others that joy – how do we do that?  How can we demonstrate the Joy we have through Christ so others will understand and desire it?

How long is longsuffering?  Is it a month, year?  What does it mean to be longsuffering?  Longsuffering?  About what?  How do we show that fruit, how do we keep from being obnoxious in enduring something for a long term, telling others how we are ‘suffering’ for whatever reason?  Should others even know?  What is the difference between sharing our burdens with someone and complaining about them?

How does a guy be gentle?  We think about how we handle a baby or train an animal, but is that mean doing the same thing with adults and people that annoy us?

Being good.  I think I know what that means, but how do I translate that into showing others goodness?  How do I always be good?

Faith?  I feel like I trust in God, yet, but I seem to doubt.  How can I become a Christian with absolute faith in Him and never worrying about anything I put before Him?  How can I produce fruit for God, when I try, but just don’t seem to have enough faith?

Meekness, me?  I tend to be loud and boisterous, my personality is such that to act meek would be instantly seen as phony unless I can figure out how it can be done through the spirit.  How do I do that?  How do I become humble, I don’t like to brag, but I am proud of my abilities?

Temperance, in what?  It is difficult for me to show restraint, I like to go ‘big’ with things in my life, how can I possibly have fruit that produces temperance in me and helps others at the same time?  It just isn’t my personality.

The above verses were given after Paul had chastised the Galatians for their treatment of each other.  He was pointing out that if we are truly Christians we should be supportive of each other and help build each other up.

A major part of the strive was the belief by some they must be circumcised as was called for in the Old Testament.  There was a division in the church and they were not respectful of each other.  Paul made it clear that requiring the circumcision was paramount to going back to the laws and they were slipping back from grace.

So how do we attain all these fruits and produce these fruits for God that Paul told us to seek after?

Fortunately, it is not on us alone.  It comes with our trust and obedience to God; being serious about serving Him and allowing the Holy Spirit to work with us.

And for some of us, especially on certain issues, it does take work, it not only does not come naturally, it is almost against our very nature.  God doesn’t want to change our personalities; He wants to enhance them so they can be used by Him to present the Gospel to others.  

The answer to all my questions comes down to submission to God’s spirit and a sincere desire to come closer to God.  The nice thing is I don’t really have to form a plan to do all these things.  But I do need patience to allow Him to work in me.

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again