Devotionals for the Heart: A special kind of fruit we need for all seasons

Fruit for All Seasons
A devotional by Mirachelle Canada

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

–Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)

We have much to be thankful for! Among the greatest gifts from God to enjoy in this new season are the fruits of the Spirit. Most of us can list them by heart. Perhaps those that immediately come to mind are love, joy, and peace from the festive close of last year.

Love, joy, and peace seem to be the ones people grasp and receive with quickness. The next few—patience, kindness, and goodness—tend to take a little more work. I find my patience is tested daily. Especially in traffic. We welcome kindness from God, but must chose to extend it others. It’s not easy to be kind to someone who is mean or abusive. And goodness, though we look for it in God, takes our commitment to overcome our flesh and temptations of sin.

The last three fruits—faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—are the ones people tend to focus on the least and take for granted as fruits from the Spirit. What do you think of when someone says “faithfulness”? A popular response is “God is faithful.” What about your faithfulness? Faithfulness as a fruit of the Spirit means maintaining our faith in God, moving forward on our walk with Him, and keeping our commitment to Him. Faith must be consumed and exercised at all times. That is why, with the Spirit’s fruit offering, we can be “faith-full.”

Gentleness seems less required in our daily walk. That doesn’t make it a less meaningful fruit. It is most used with the innocent or frail, like children, animals, and the elderly. It can also be used in a crisis situation when a calm and gentle voice can soothe a hurting or tortured soul. Gentleness is a fruit that Jesus Christ displayed the most among those who needed healing. Jesus carrying a lamb on His shoulders is the picture I most imagine when I think of His gentleness.

Last of the fruits of the Spirit is self-control and it is the fruit most overlooked. Why? Because most of us think we have control of our lives, as shown by our daily habits. We plan, we decide, and we do without even thinking that our ability to do so comes from the Spirit. Our ability to exercise self-control comes from Him. We can’t control ourselves or our circumstances without His help. Self-control must be received from Him and we must rely on Him to maintain it in us. What a relief. We aren’t responsible for staying in control of ourselves, God’s Holy Spirit is. How well the effect of the self-control fruit depends on our willingness to depend on Him.

If you feel you are lacking in one fruit or not partaking enough of another, the best way to remedy this is to ask the Holy Spirit for more of them. Ask Him to show you ways to exercise and maintain the fruits. When I felt lacking in the fruits, I took over a week to pray over them each specifically, highlighting one per day. Daily, I meditated on it, searched for its repetition in the Bible, and offered it back to God to produce and do more with in my daily walk with Him. I can assure you it’s not a one time, one week, one year commitment. It takes a lifetime. 

But the more we seek out and live by the fruits of the Holy Spirit, the more we are blessed and in turn can bless others with them. They are gifts that will never stop giving life and power to your purpose.

Let’s Pray: Dear God, thank You for all the fruits of Your Spirit. Help me to receive and consume each of Your fruits. Highlight those in me that I need to partake more of so that I can be better equipped to be Your hands, feet, eyes, and ears to the world in need. In Jesus’s Name I pray. Amen.

Song of Reflection: “Seasons” by Hillsong Worship. Listen to it here. 

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Author Bio:

Mirachelle Canada is a writer, playwright, screenwriter, and theatre director/producer currently residing in Northern Virginia. She earned her Master of Fine Arts in Script & Screenwriting from Regent University and is a member of Act One: Hollywood Film & Television Writing Program, ACFW, ACFW Virginia Chapter (Treasurer), The Jerry Jenkins Writers Guild, and Your Novel Blueprint.

Mirachelle is passionate about awakening creativity and the gifts of God in everyone. Her first historical fiction novel is set during WWII, inspired by her time studying theatre education in London, England. She loves horses, cats, dogs, and all things peppermint!

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Connect with Mirachelle:
Website: www.mirachellecanada.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mirachellecanada/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/miracan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mirachellecanada/
Email: mirachelle@mirachellecanada.com