A Life Worthy

Tag: fruit of the spirit

  • One-a-Day Monday 6/16/14

    number 1For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge, and to knowledge, self-control… (2 Peter 1:6a).

    When my classroom of thirteen-year-olds gets ornery, I point out to them one of life’s great lessons—you will be controlled.  You have the option of controlling yourself, but if you don’t take that option, you will be controlled by someone else.  In the classroom setting, that “Someone else” is me, and my tools for controlling behavior take the form of discipline—unpleasant and unwanted for most people.

    It’s very much the same when it comes to the spiritual life.  If you don’t control yourself, someone else will.  Peter is talking here to believers, and we don’t need to worry about our Enemy controlling us.  But if the Holy Spirit needs to step in and control your behavior, you’re not going to like it.  Remember, God is not interested in robots—He won’t simply remote-control you into proper behavior.  He will discipline you, much as a father or a teacher might.  And it won’t be pleasant.

    Self-control is an important fruit of the Spirit.  Peter tells us elsewhere that we should, “Be clear minded and self-controlled, so you can pray” (1 Peter 4:7).  As believers, we are expected to practice this discipline, so that we can be useful and productive members of His kingdom.

    So, Beloved, who will control you today?  Will you be a spiritual grown up, or a spiritual 8th grader? Because, trust me, you aren’t going to like God’s version of after-school detention.

  • One-a-Day Monday 10/28/13

    Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but number 1rather expose them.  (Eph. 5:11)

    Good things generally need light in order to grow.  Sure, you can grow some things in darkness—mold, mildew, assorted fungal yuck—but not the good stuff.  Apples, raspberries, peaches, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control—these need light.  What “Fruitless deeds of darkness” are you having something to do with?  Hey, you don’t have to tell me—I’m not running a tabloid here.  But ask yourself—what do you have in your life that is fruitless?  What fungal yuck are you growing in the temple of the Holy Spirit?  It doesn’t have to be raging evil.  I’m assuming that you’ve never stolen a baby or sold your mother on eBay.  But if God isn’t part of what you’re doing, if the Light of the World is not invited along, then it’s darkness.  It’s fruitless.  Pull it out by the roots—or better yet, ask God to do it.  He won’t “accidentally” miss anything.  Expose it to the Light, and let it wither away.

    Let today be trash day.