Galatians 5:22-23

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

Check yourself, the fruit of the spirit, isn’t singing in the choir, working in the nursery, working vbs, going to church or reading your bible. You may be tempted to look at the growth in a girl’s life that
you’ve discipled and say, ‘see! She’s changed so much!’, and then wrongly equate that with your own personal growth as a Christian. Hopefully, we are not hiding behind our works to give us false assurance in our salvation. If you are not growing in love for others, (and not just others but for the ‘unlovely’), if your joy is only circumstantial and if you just can’t find peace in your heart that only comes from knowing who God is and who you are in Him, you probably don’t have the real thing. It’s a sobering thought, but it should be our prayer that God santicfy us through our suffering and service to Him and that we analyze whether or not we have been saved by grace or in some way, been saving ourselves. Have you been subscribing to a DIY sort of salvation? Are you involved in tons of activities surrounding the church but lack love for those around you and for those you serve? When things don’t go your way, do you fall into a state of depression and self-pity and lose your joy? Is there a gentleness about you or graciousness that flows from your mouth to those you come in contact with or do your words reveal the critical and judgment spirit that is harboring in your heart? An apple tree can only bare apples and I pray that I may bare the fruit of one who is in Christ.