Fruit of the Spirit.

So, I've recently discovered this site Tumblr, where people post nifty pictures, and while browsing, I realized that I could use the site as an inspiration factor for blog ideas. And while browsing I saw this picture:

The picture automatically reminded me of a bible study I led with some girls in my youth group a few years back. It's called A Young Women's Walk with God, by Elizabeth George. It's a study on the importance of having all of the fruit of the spirit present in your life. What I loved is how much scripture Elizabeth provides, to reiterate her main points. So I decided to go back into my notes from the bible study, and wanted so share the first chapter of the book. And for those who likes it, should def invest in getting the book! It's not only for young women, it can apply to men as well.

 ¹Then Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father takes care of the vineyard. ²He removes every one of my branches that doesn’t produce fruit. He also prunes every branch that does produce fruit to make it produce more fruit."

 ^3You are already clean because of what I have told you. ⁴Live in me, and I will live in you. A branch cannot produce any fruit by itself. It has to stay attached to the vine. In the same way, you cannot produce fruit unless you live in me.

 ⁵“I am the vine. You are the branches. Those who live in me while I live in them will produce a lot of fruit. But you can’t produce anything without me. ⁶Whoever doesn’t live in me is thrown away like a branch and dries up. Branches like this are gathered, thrown into a fire, and burned. ⁷If you live in me and what I say lives in you, then ask for anything you want, and it will be yours. ⁸You give glory to my Father when you produce a lot of fruit and therefore show that you are my disciples.

John 15:1-8

The word "fruit" is used throughout the bible to refer to show evidence of what is on the inside of a person. All nine fruits stand together and make up our walk with God. They are like a string of Christmas lights- there is one string with many lights that light up at once when plugged into the electrical socket. But if one bulb goes out, the entire string goes out. That is how God’s fruit is planted in our lives.

Make a tree good, and then its fruit will be good. Or make a tree rotten, and then its fruit will be rotten. A person can recognize a tree by its fruit.

Matthew 12:33

So What Can I Do?

We can't just think "maybe if I just try harder..." Jesus teaches that, that do-it-yourself effort isn't the answer. The fruit of the Spirit can only be produced by yielding to God and allowing His Spirit to work in us as we walk through the events life brings our way every day.

The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.

Galatians 5:17

All the fruit work together- they are like a watch that can be taken apart for cleaning and repair, but each piece must be put into place for the watch to work.

So that is just a preview of the book! I would totally look into investing and doing the study!