Daily Devotional: The Holy Spirit, The Fruit That Grows Slowly
This is an opinion column.
BREATH OF HEAVEN
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”
Galatians 5:22-23
REFLECTION
Most of us have looked at this list at some point and felt quietly discouraged. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. It reads like a description of someone you admire from a distance, someone who seems to have it all together in ways you have never quite managed. And if you are honest, you can probably point to a specific item on that list that makes you wince a little, the one that feels furthest from where you actually live.
Here is what helps: Paul calls these fruit, not achievements. There is an enormous difference. Achievements are produced by effort. Fruit grows. It grows slowly, organically, in response to conditions that are right for growth. You do not strain a tree into producing apples. You put it in good soil, give it light and water, and in time, fruit appears. The fruit of the Spirit works the same way. It is not something you manufacture through trying harder. It is something that grows in you as you stay connected to the Vine.
Which means the question is not: why am I not more patient yet? The question is: am I staying in the conditions where patience can grow? Am I spending time with the Spirit who produces it? Am I allowing Him into the specific moments and relationships where patience is being tested, or am I shutting Him out and then wondering why I keep failing the same test?
Think about the most genuinely loving, peaceful, patient person you know. They did not get there by trying very hard to be loving and peaceful and patient. They got there by a long, sustained, sometimes stumbling walk with God in which the Spirit slowly shaped them into someone they could not have become on their own. That process is available to every one of us. It just requires staying connected, staying surrendered, and being willing to give it time.
Which fruit of the Spirit do you most need to see grow in your life right now, and what would it look like to intentionally stay in the conditions where that specific fruit can grow this week?
PRAYER
Holy Spirit, we want to bear fruit that lasts, not performances that impress. We acknowledge that the love and patience and peace we most need are not things we can produce on our own. We need You to grow them in us. We choose today to stay connected to You, to remain in the conditions where fruit can form, to stop straining and start abiding. Grow in us what only You can grow. We are willing to give it time. Amen.
