Today, we’re kicking off the latest To Be Praised Ministries series: Fruit of the Spirit! If you’r new to the To Be Praised Bible studies, it is my prayer that you will grow in the Lord and within a network of women who strive to be a godly woman who is praised for her love and devotion to Jesus. If you’ve been a reader of the studies for awhile, as always welcome!
In Galatians chapter 5, the Bible discusses spiritual freedom through Jesus Christ. Written to the churches in the city of Galatia, this book is filled with truths for daily living. What’s interesting is Paul, the author of this book, establishes in chapter 1 that the reason he is writing to them is because they are turning away from the truth that was previously preached to them.
As we study the fruit of the Spirit, let’s ground ourselves in this fact: the fruits listed below (and in Galatians chapter 5) are fruits of truth. They are the fruit that sustain the deepest parts of our our existence: our spirit. Where there is truth, there is freedom.
The fruit of the Spirit are:
- Love
- Joy
- Peace
- Patience
- Kindness
- Goodness
- Faithfulness
- Gentleness
- Self-control
Today, our society suffers from the glorification of lust which has marred the image of the perfect love God intended for us to use a prototype. It’s difficult to wrap around minds around the idea of PERFECT love, but to know Jesus is to know a perfect and true love.
How can we implement this kind of love in our lives? The kind of love that is not selfish, not arrogant, doesn’t act unbecomingly, is not jealous, doesn’t seek its own, that doesn’t seek it’s own, that doesn’t keep an account of wrong but rather bears, hopes, believes and endures all things?
We act like Jesus. We put love in action and we take our ego off the table. Loving people isn’t conditional. Loving people isn’t circumstantial. If it were, we wouldn’t have been loved by God while we were enemies to Him. (Romans 5:8) We love the way Jesus loves us, the way God loves us, when we demonstrate our love through sacrifice.
I want to encourage you this week, to find a woman in your life to love. Find someone who isn’t easy to love. The woman you struggle with forgiving may be an ideal candidate. If you find a woman who is a stranger, but she is struggling with her children at Target, love her enough to help her and pray with her! Love knows NO limit. God’s love transcends the heavenly realms, it couldn’t be contained on the cross, it pushed pass the grave and it rose up defying all Earth’s natural laws. That’s the kind of love we have in Jesus. That’s the kind of love we need to tell the world about. That’s the kind of love we need to live.
#tobepraised
#fruitoftheSpiritchallenge
How can YOU love a woman in your life better this week? Feel free to email me how your first fruit challenge goes! We’re all in this together!
Dani
Oooh I like this one even more. I don’t know which one is the hardest to exemplify. Great writing! Keep up the good work.