Fruit of the Spirit and Discipline

"Fruit of the Spirit" is a biblical reference that summarizes the nine attributes of a follower of Jesus, found in:

Galatians 5:22-23

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control; against such things there is no law."

So how do we as Christian's obtain these fruits? We will bear the fruits of the spirit when we truly follow Jesus. Spiritual fruit will show itself in our changed lives and our changed character. We are all being discipled by something; if we don't intentionally make that something Jesus, then it will by default be the world/ culture, which typically leads people into radical individualism and away from God. As we spend more and more time with Jesus, through prayer, scripture, fellowship and worship, we will be transformed to be more like him, and less like us.

How do seasons of life affect the evidence of these fruits in our lives? As believers we go through many seasons of life. I believe one of the most dangerous and long seasons we can encounter is: Stagnancy. This is defined as: inactive, sluggish, or dull. Often times we have experienced a life completely without God and also, a deep and overflowing desire for him and fellowship with other believers. But when the season of Stagnancy occurs we become numb, neutral, unaware of God's voice, oblivious to the Holy Spirit, and we just go through the motions of life. Still believing in the theology that transformed us, but detached from the power which is its essence. The word of God and the Holy Spirit go hand in hand, but in this season, we take it upon ourselves to detach it, and it leads us into a lonely place. There are other seasons we go through when the evidence of these fruits are clear and beautiful. Season's of Growth and Passion, lead us closer and closer, with hearts of fire for the Lord. In these seasons the fruits are growing, bright, being nurtured, and shared.

How do we keep the fruits of the spirit evident in our lives? I think the simple answer here is: discipline. Because we inevitably will go through different seasons of life, some easier than others, we have to be intentional about our disciplines. Paul talks about training ourselves in Godliness in 1 Timothy.

Train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.
1 Timothy 4: 7,8.

We probably won't always "feel like" training. Some days it will feel good, some days we will be too tired, some days we feel completely detached. But making a decision to daily and intentionally, regardless of feeling "train ourselves in Godliness" will allow these fruits to remain evident and alive in our lives.

God does not expect perfection, but he is glorified as our character is refined to reflect these fruits of the spirit, living a life seeking his kingdom above all things.

If you are ready to intentionally be discipled by Jesus, and not let the world/ culture disciple and shape you anymore, let's connect and talk about how Christian Life Coaching can get you there! http://www.praiselifecoaching.com

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