[Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Friday, May 30, 2014

[Paul via Faith-talk]

Hello and good day to all my fellow readers.  Well, here in the Baltimore area the temperature has warmed up to the extent that I think I'll be taking my usual walk around the block not long after I finish this message to you.  I do hope that everything is going well for you today when you read this message.

Several days ago an article by Ruth O'Neil was presented to you and, given the positive responses that I received privately, here is another one of her contributions.  Today's one is entitled "Summing It Up," rendered as follows:

The fruit of the Spirit is discussed in Galatians 5:22-23:  "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance:  against such there is no law."

These are not only traits of Christian character; they should also be the internal desires of our hearts after we know Christ as our Savior.  We should want to show the changes that only Christ can make in us inside and out.

_Love is the greatest command from God.  We are to love God with all that we have in us.  When we show love, we show Christ living in us.

_Joy is a gift God gives us.  So many aspects of our lives can be joyful as we yield them to God.  When we show joy, we show Christ living in us.

_Peace is a comfort that God gives us.  God promises His peace if we are in His will.  When we have peace in all circumstances of life, we show Christ living in us.

_Patience is the fruit of the Spirit that I need to work on the most.  Sometimes I need to step back and take a deep breath.  When I show patience, I show Christ living in me.

_Kindness should characterize how we treat everyone, even those who make our patience wear thin.  When we show kindness to everyone, we show Christ living in us.

_Goodness is something that sometimes can take very little effort.  It can be just a smile to someone who needs one.  When we show goodness, we show Christ living in us.

Many times _faithfulness comes through trials and testing.  These may be hard but well worth the effort they call forth.  When we show faithfulness, we show Christ living in us.

_Gentleness is the epitome of what Christ is.  Adults need gentleness just as much as newborn babies do.  When we show gentleness, we show Christ living in us.

_Self-control is another area of my life where God seems to be constantly working with me.  It can be very difficult for all of us at times, but when we show self-control, we show Christ living in us.

How does your fruit of the Spirit look? Is it constantly ripe for the picking or unused and rotting off the tree? Is there any fruit at all?

And there you have Sister Ruth's article which I trust was a blessing to you.  I find it interesting that the Catholic Jerusalem Bible in the 1966 edition translates the word "fruit" as "harvest." To me and possibly several others, I like this translation better.

And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, in these last days in which we live.  Lord willing, tomorrow there will be another Daily Thought message for you.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul