The Fruit of the Spirit is... SELF-CONTROL (and my 100th post on "Forget not his Benefits :)!)

                                             

Love

Joy

Peace

Patience 

Kindness

Goodness

Faithfulness 

Gentleness

Self Control

                
I moved my blog here just under sixteen months ago, and this post will put me at the 100th post threshold. Such a fun milestone :)! Today is also the last day of our Fruits of the Spirit study... how did that happen we just started! This was so much fun, and I am thrilled to have gotten to share some of the fun with those who read my blog, even if it wasn't always on time ;).
 

Now, on to the topic of self control! Romans 8:13-14 tells us that "if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God." And Proverbs 25:28 points out that "A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls." Self-control is so important! A lack of control over the desires of the flesh in which we once walked (Ephesians 2), can damage so much... not the least of which is the hearts and relationships of those you love. So many words or actions, said or done without controlling your emotions, go much father than we ever meant, but it hurts the other person just as much as if we had- sometimes more.

"Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified," Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9:25-27. People will go to great lengths to make sure that they win what they want to win in earthly riches, but so often we all, (myself definitely included!) forget what riches we gain when we use the self-control that comes with faith in our Lord. Hugh Black says "True self control means willingness to resign the small for the sake of the great, the present for the sake of the future, the material for the sake of the spiritual, and that is what faith makes possible".

 

I love how  C.H. Spurgeon says that self control "is the best medicine -for it is a preventative and a preservative as well as a cure." Not only will those who practice self control in their walk with the Lord be cured of past sins, but it will also help them as they run the race of faith to also keep them from sins that they have not been acquainted with before!

"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil", Ephesians 5:15-16 reminds us. There is so much that seems like it is good- and might be in moderation. But there comes a point where we have to evaluate our priorities and decide if what we are doing is really the best use of our time. We are given such a short time on this earth when you think of the thousands of years that it has been in place. What can we do to make the biggest impact for our Lord through our Lord?

 

Blessings in the Lord King,

 

Bri :)

 

The fruit of the Spirit is... FAITHFULNESS and GENTLENESS

I love the way that Psalms 36:5 describes the vastness of our Father's faithfulness to us... "Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds." His love is more immense than we could ever imagine, his faithfulness higher than we could ever reach! Jesus is faithfulness, Revelation 19:11 tells us; "Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war." The Lord is so faithful to us, undeserving as we are! 1 John 1:9 reminds us, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." When you are given faithfulness, it should make you want to show faithfulness back, and the disciples understood this. The story told in John 6:66-68 illustrates this when it says "After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the Twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”"There is no one who deserves more faithfulness and thankfulness from us than the Lord our God! This hymn is a praise to God's faithfulness in a tone of deep thankfulness...

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee,
Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not,
As Thou hast been,Thou forever wilt be.

(Refrain)

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies I see All I have needed Thy hand hath provided Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above;
Join with all nature in manifold witness,
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.

(Refrain)

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thine own great presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today, and bright hope for tomorrow
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside.

(Refrain)

I love the faithfulness of David to his brother in the Lord, Jonathan. They made a covenant to each other, and even after Jonathan died, David stuck to that promise and cared for his family for years. Ruth also showed faithfulness to Naomi when she followed her to the Promised Land even after Naomi tried to discourage her and gave her no thanks.

 

Faithfulness is not always being the one who will go along with those we know just to prove that "we will do anything with and for that person". True faithfulness is, at times, leading them back from a path of sin, even if this is painful for the person- or for you. "Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy," says Proverbs 27:6. But even while using faithfulness to correct, you must also use faithfulness to connect. Just because you are correcting others does not mean that you should let all bets off and say or do anything that could damage your relationship. When David's son Absalom tried to take the kingdom and started a war, in faithfulness to his kingdom, King David had to fight back. But that didn't mean that he gave up faithfulness to the bond between him and his son. He wanted to correct the wrong, yes, but he also wanted to restore the relationship. "And the king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders about Absalom" (2 Samuel 18:5). He announced both his desire (though Joab did not listen) and his method-gentleness- publicly. Which leads me to a few words on the fruit of gentleness :).

"But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere," says James 3:17. Wisdom and gentleness go hand in hand, and I think that is logical, since those who practice gentleness are often the ones who listen the most. I read a poem in my fourth grade English book that said 

 

"A wise old owl lived in an oak
The more he saw the less he spoke
The less he spoke the more he heard.
Why can’t we all be like that wise old bird?"

 

That poem has stuck with me ever since. This "wise old owl" was not clamoring to be heard or put in the spotlight, but was quietly listening to others before he drew his conclusions. Often, the reason we do not respond gently is because we deal with an issue before we have all the details that will shed light on the situation, and it causes us to stress and react harshly. 

 

But look at what David says to the Lord; "You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me, and your gentleness made me great" (Psalm 18:35 ESV). Isn't it true? When you deal with a little one as they are learning something, don't they respond better as you deal gently with them rather than rushing them? I don't speak from a lot of experience here... patience, self-control, and gentleness all fall under the same category for me... category "I definitely need God to continue growing my obedience in those areas!". Haha :). But the Lord is faithful to continue to teach me and grow me, and for this I am thankful :)! These verses are a wonderful reminder of the bond of unity that we are to have with others; "And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness." (2 Timothy 2:24)

Blessings to you as you serve our Lord,

Bri :)

The fruit of the Spirit is... KINDESS and GOODNESS

First off, I can't believe that we are half way done with this study, and two-thirds of the way through the fruits of the spirit! I have really enjoyed this :). I hope that these posts have been a blessing to a few of you, but even if they haven't, I know it has gotten me thinking to write them! That is one of the reasons I love writing, it makes you really ponder things that I would otherwise run past :).

Kindness and goodness. They bring very much the same thought to our minds, somebody who is willing to go out of their way for something. Kindness would be those who are willing to go out of their way for those who need help, even when they don't ask, and might even not appreciate, it, doing, as Luke 6:31 says "unto others as you would have them do unto you". Goodness would be going out of your way to do what is right, even when nobody sees it, just because you know that God wants you to do it.

I found it very interesting to realize, while I was studying today, that the word 'kindness" isn't in my concordance! "Goodness" is also little used. Part of the reason for this is because they are often used instead as "mercy" or "compassion" and "righteousness". But I think it is very fitting, as these two fruits are both very important, but are best shown by those who are humble and never think of what they can get, but what they can give. Following Christ and being a blessing to others when done with a right heart is never done for show. Of course, we shouldn't only be following the commands of our Lord so that others will look at us and say "Oh, they're so impressively godly!". That is pride, and that's not godly! Besides which, we have no goodness without Lord; Psalms 16:2 says, "I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” But some of the fruits of the spirit, such as love, or joy, should be openly shared, while kindness and righteousness are usually best carried out by doing the little things that nobody notices. Helping a little one clean up their mess without letting them know how undesirable it is for you, even when they were told not to make it in the first place, sharing the truths of the Lord with others, and taking a meal to someone are all acts of kindness. Loving those who might hurt us, setting aside time to spend with the Lord, and following God even when it is hard, without any pride in our hearts, are all what would be considered "goodness".

I think a wonderful way to illustrate these fruits is found in Luke 10:25-39, the parable of the good Samaritan...

"And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”
 

But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”"

After this man was beat and left for dead, two men walked by. One was a priest. While claiming to have religion, he had no goodness. The other was a Levite. While being one of the chosen men of Israel by God's kindness, he showed none. But the third man to make it down the road had both. This man needed help, and so he showed him kindness and took care of all his needs. Then he went over and beyond that, following the Lord to also take him somewhere where he could rest and fully heal, free of personal charge. 

Christ was "wounded for our transgressions, and with his stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5), "so that in the coming ages God might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 2:7). He showed kindness in saving us from a life in hell, but he also went above and beyond that to give us a place of rest in our father's house, free of personal charge. Not because we deserved it, but because, out of his mercy and love, his kindness and goodness, his compassion and grace, he wanted to extend to us riches of grace to us in measures we could never imagine or hope for. 

 

 I think this is a good verse to sum this up... "Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing." 1 Peter 3:8-9. A mind that is ready to embrace others suggestions as long as they don't compromise God's commands, a heart ready to do all you can for those who are hurting, sharing love for others even when they are unkind to you. May God grant that through him we would be able to do all of these things!

What are some acts of kindness and goodness in following the Lord that you could do this week?

~Bri :)

The Fruit of the Spirt is... PEACE and PATIENCE

I love that these two fruits of the spirit ended up together, because I feel that they go right hand-in-hand! Having peace with God's plan for you is going to give you patience with how those plans play out, and striving to deal with the issues of life with patience is going to lead to an atmosphere of peace.

What is peace? In a sermon several years ago, I heard a story of how several painters were given the challenge of painting what peace looked like. Several people drew quiet country scenes, or maybe a family gathered around the dinner table, or a sleepy snowy town. And those things can be "peaceful". But then the judges saw the next picture, and they all exclaimed,  "That is true peace."

The painting was of a great rushing waterfall, in front of which, very close to falls, there was a tree. But what made the judges realize that this displayed peace, was a little nest on the branch of the tree. And a mama bird, completely without fear of the crashing water, sat patiently waiting for her little birds to hatch. She had peace that, though the waters were full of turmoil, God would keep the waters running their course, and she would be safe in his hand, even so close to danger.

Peace is trusting God, even when around us is chaos. Even when things appear bad, knowing that God is in control. He has planned every one of our days, and we can rest in him, knowing that he is doing all for our refinement for his glory.

I love these verses from "How Firm a Foundation".  The whole hymn is a beautiful reminder to me that we are to trust and rest in God's plan and have peace with his direction, but these verses have always been my favorite...

"Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen and help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.

When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine."

Christ says, "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world". We do not have peace because we are secure in the world. We have peace because the world is secure in the hand of our Lord, the "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace", Isaiah 9:6. Dwelling on the Lord will give us peace in him, as Isaiah 26: 3 reminds us; "You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you." Charles Spurgeon tells us that "Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of it's sorrows, but only empties today of it's strength."

2 Timothy 2:22 says to "Flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart". Peace is a virtue that is a mark of those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Obviously, it starts with following Christ and his righteousness, but then it spills out into every aspect of our live. We are told to live in fellowship with all those God brings into our live, "For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace", Ephesians 2:14-15.

As for patience... I am not a patient person by nature. I am rather a perfectionistic over-achiver, a quality that comes with a high level of un-quality impatience. I speak on no authority on this. I am constantly battling impatience myself. But my desire is that God would cultivate a spirit of  patience in me for "to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life" (Romans 2:7).

In my friend Katie's post today, I loved how she mentioned that God doesn't just give us patience when we ask him to help us be patient- he gives us situations that will help us grow patience! St. Francis of Assisi (no clue who he is, found this quote as a quote in a book, haha!) says that "No one will ever know the full depth of his capacity for patience and humility as long as nothing bothers him. It is only when times are troubled and difficult that he can see how much of either is in him." It's easy to be carefree when things happen as we like, but when put in a situation that is undesirable, that is when patience is needed... the definition of patience is literally "a state of endurance under difficult circumstances"! But we can "rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces patience." But if we didn't have suffering, we wouldn't need patience, right? Well, Luke 8:15 says "As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience." Those who cultivate patience will glean fruit in other areas! Isn't it amazing how every fruit of the spirit grows when one grows?! It's like planting certain vegetables in the same area of the garden together, as they will help each other grow, making each one stronger, while still each being a different, vibrant, maturing fruit :)!

When might we need patience? In any area of life! When you are babysitting and not being obeyed, you definitely need patience! Your little sibling's relationship with you is of so much more importance than that they put towels in the hamper. Of course, they need to take care of the towels, too, if they were told; but it's not life or death. You need to back down, pray for patience, and *then* talk to the sibling. I have found that speaking patiently gets just as good results, and far less tears- on everyones part. That doesn't mean that I'm never impatient. I am... *so* much. But it is so worth it to make the effort to respond in the way the Lord is leading, rather than to follow our sinful flesh. God's way is always best, isn't it :)? While I was studying patience today, I found this verse, that I think is one that I will be memorizing, because it is something I need constant reminder of: "The servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient", 2 Timothy 2:24. Must not strive; must deal patiently with others, *even* if they are the ones in the wrong. Must be gentle to all men; even when they are being difficult and you don't want to. Able to teach; even when the pupil is a slow learner and you can bake the meal quicker and cleaner when doing it yourself. Patient; in all things.

"We urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all." (1 Thessalonians 5:14).

"May the God of peace be with you all" (Romans 15:33) :).

~Bri

The Fruit of the Spirit is... JOY

"Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; 

make known his deeds among the peoples! 

Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all 

his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; 

let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!

 Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his 

presence continually!"

                                   (Psalm 105:1-4 ESV)

Joy... What a wonderful topic :)!

A Christian's joy is something so much more than just happiness. Anybody can be happy. When things are going our way, we're getting everything we want, and nobody is annoying us, we are in a state where everything is working with our fleshly desires. There is nothing there that makes our flesh put up a fuss against our Savior's commands or the circumstances that he has given. This state has been given the term "happy". But joy goes *so* much deeper than simply enjoying momentary pleasure. Our joy is not stemmed from circumstances, but from our fellowship with God. We "rejoice in the Lord; (We) will take joy in the God of (our) salvation", Habakkuk 3:18. In the Lord, we always have something to joy about! We are claimed by him! He is ours, and we are his! Everything we do, he is walking with us all the way, sometimes carrying us, sometimes disciplining us, stretching us, comforting us. If all we had to joy in was our salvation, it would be enough to keep us singing his praises for a life time!

But what about during trials? How are we to joy then? Joy is a choice. God commands it, yes. Just like he commands love, and obedience to our parents, he has commanded joy. And just with love and obedience, joy doesn't come naturally. But through God's grace we have his help to make the right choice -to choose joy even in trials. James 1:2 tells us, "Count it all joy, brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness." Even our trials are being used for his glory! He is making us "steadfast", growing us closer to him, causing us to realize more and more that he is the reason we rejoice, and we will praise him still, "looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." (Hebrews 12:2). We can choose to look past the spilled milk... or broken figurine, lost shirt, or wreaked plans... and choose to to say "Thy will be done, Lord. I trust you still. Show me what you want me to learn from this situation, and help me to praise you still", and then look for things that you do have to be thankful for that tie directly into the situation that you want to get discouraged in or frustrated about. 

Paul tells us that we are to "Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep" (Romans 12:15) and "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you"  (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Even when we are weeping, he reminds us, we have something to be joyful- not just happy, but joyful- about. "Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning" (Psalms 30:5). There are so many things to rejoice in, to be thankful for. One of the ways that I try to make thankfulness and joy a part of my life is to try to set aside some time each week to write down the little things that I am thankful for that week. That was how Thankful Thursdays were born and this blog got it's title... and they are some of my favorite posts to write! Sometimes it's just a fun little thing to do, but other times, it is a time to sit and think of all that I have to thank God for even when things seem hard. William Vander Hoven tells us that "Joy is not the absence of trouble, but the presence of Christ."


I wrote some more thoughts on rejoicing a couple years ago, which you can find here, and Katie's post on joy is here :). What are some of your thoughts on the commandment to rejoice?

Blessings to you all,

Bri

"What I need is a more grateful heart to the giver of every good and perfect gift" ~"Stonewall" Thomas Jackson

The Fruit of the Spirit is... LOVE

One of the many blessings that the Lord has given me in my life has been a godly young lady who has joined me and inspired me in my study of God's word for almost three years now. She encouraged me to join her in a one week study of the fruits of the spirit, writing our findings either on our blogs or in a journal entry. I am so excited to be doing this, so eager to see what the Lord brings to light, and pretty sure already that this will be a great reality check this week on how much growth I need in these Fruits of the Spirit. Praise God that his mercies are new every morning, and that he will finish the work that he has started in me!

"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against these there is no law."

The fruits of the spirit rightly begins by listing love. Out of all the fruits listed, is is the one through which all others must flow. Love without works is shallow; but works without love are simply done to make us feel good about ourselves, righteous, or proud that we are better than so-and-so. I love how Amy Carmichael puts it; "You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving."

There are two words for "love" in the original manuscripts of the bible, "Agapao" and "Phileo". Agapao means to love dearly, while Phileo is a less intense "fondness or friendship". I found it interesting earlier to discover that when Jesus ask Peter "do you love me?", he used the word "Agapao", and the first two times when Peter replied, he answered "Lord, you know that I love (Phileo) you." It was the third time, when Peter was deeply grieved at the repeated question, that he answered in passion that he Agapao loved him, and Jesus gave him his finally instructions. I have heard that the question repeated three times was a reminder of Peter's denial of Christ three times, but after reading that, I think it was also a reminder that only our deepest love will do for Christ. Does he have our whole heart? Do we delight in his word, love to talk to him, and sing his praises at every opportunity? God says, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued to extend faithful love to you." (Jeremiah 31:3).

God's love is everlasting! Nothing can separate us from him! And Christ calls us to imitate him in spreading the love of our heavenly father, through the love that will overspill from the gift he gives to us at conversion, as Paul writes in Ephesians 5:2; "Walk in love as the Messiah also loved us". This love of the Messiah was shown when "God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, while we were yet dead in our trespasses made us alive together in Christ" (Ephesians 2:4-5). Christ has so much love for us. How can we not share that love with others?! It may be through helping your little brother up after he falls. It may be by sharing encouragement with a friend who is going through a difficult time. It may be by sharing the gospel with someone who does not know about the love that our Lord had for them- the same love that he has shown me.

But no matter what you do to show that love, remember this: "Greater love hath no man than this, that he laid down his life for his friends." Christ loved. Not to get anything... he was killed while showing his love. Not when it was easy... he was separated from the Father. Not when he felt like it... he plead for God to find another way. Not because we loved him... but because he loved us. Christ's love asks for nothing in return. Likewise, we should never ask for anything in return... and EVERYthing we do should be filled with love. "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things", 1 Corinthians 13:1-7

This is very convicting to me, as I know that there are so many ways that I still need Christ's work in my life to bring me to a place where I even partially copy his love as he asks. But that's another aspect of God's love... he gives grace to us sinners and continues to grow us!

You'll want to go to my friend Katie's blog post about love, and see what she felt lead to share today as well :)! What is you favorite verse about Christ's love for us or his commands for showing it to others?

In the words of Jude 2, "May mercy, peace, and *love* be multiplied to you" :)!!!

~Bri