My husband is big on fruit. The fruit of the Spirit. He teaches our family about working on our fruit and walking in the fruit of the Spirit. He tells our kids, “I can take your mistakes, but what I can’t take is a bad attitude about it.” He is determined for our children to know that walking in the fruit of the Holy Spirit is their first priority as Christians and their biggest tactic in winning souls.
Full disclosure: I didn’t understand why he would always drag this issue to the ground (he still does). I was guilty of rolling my eyes and even argued with him because I just didn’t see the big deal. As I began to seek God about my marriage, I was able to see things through my husband’s eyes and after his many sermons, it clicked with me.
A series of events occurred that helped me with this revelation. My daughter’s teacher emailed us stating she was caught hitting a boy. She wasn’t in trouble because the teacher knew the boy hit her first. I asked my daughter the sequence of events when she got home. She did have the opportunity to stop and tell a teacher before she retaliated. I told my daughter she should’ve told someone since she had the opportunity. I also apologized to my girls. In the past, I had always told them to return a blow for a blow. Now armed with the fruit, I can see it will only make matters worse.
We recently lost a childhood friend. I don’t know the details, but he was shot during an argument. I often wonder when was his opportunity to walk away?
We want the good from God (His Blessings, Peace, Abundant Life, and etc.) but we won’t use the good that God gave us (His Word, His Fruits) to achieve this. When you apply His fruit to your life situations, they all work together for your good. Temperance can prevent a disagreement from becoming a funeral. Love through soft words turns away wrath. The land of milk and honey is there for us to live in, we just have to use the fruit along the way.
