Every new year kicks off with exercise and diet resolutions. The healthy lifestyle lasts about a month and a half, when Cupid brings boxes of chocolates and fancy restaurant dinners. That little cherub is a troublemaker.
Like every year, headlines grab our attention about the “it” foods to eat. This go-round, it’s berries. This seems like a no-brainer for those raised to eat our fruits and vegetables. However, my mom told my three sisters and me it would put hair on our chests. Not a desired outcome, but we knew her humor and obediently ate what was good for us.
Berries are the bomb. The antioxidants inside them protect our cells from cancer and decrease our risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Research suggests that berries enhance cognitive function, slow mental decline, and are anti-inflammatory. People who eat berries show the fruit of their good nature.
Christians are called to live lives that show the goodness of the Fruit Of The Spirit. In the same way, the benefits of berries can be seen in us; the Spirit of God should, too!
“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)
Before his death, Jesus told his friends and disciples they would not be alone. He sent his Holy Spirit to help and guide them. When we walk with the Lord, that same power, God’s very spirit, lives in us.
Researchers spend a lot of time testing and studying food to separate the good from the bad. Here is the test for walking with the Lord. Replace the word Spirit in this bible verse with your name. Would people say you are full of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control? The Spirit is God. His fruits are the very nature of God. When we show the work of the fruit, we show the proof of a good and perfect God.
Fruit can’t grow without the sun’s light. Christian, the same goes for us. We only grow when the SON’S light shines on us. Ask His Spirit to make you more like Him. Only then can we be a light in a very dark world. Let your actions do the talking. Share the fruit so that others can live life with the Lord.
IT'S A HARnDen LIFE... 