March 20th, 2026
by Eddie Exline
by Eddie Exline
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
As a Christian, the fruit of the spirit as described here in Galatians is something we should all want. If you're like me, it can also be quite difficult at times to attain, or if we do attain it, something happens and all of a sudden, in an instant, we lose it. It's frustrating, but we mustn't give up. Just like a farmer has to carefully tend his crops, watering, fertilizing, keeping the pests away, so do we have to tend our own "garden of fruit" to make sure that what we're producing is good fruit and not bad fruit. But the farmer isn't discouraged if he has to throw away one bad tomato as long as the overall crop is good. And the farmer will likely note what went wrong, maybe a pest got in or his irrigation system broke down, and he'll fix the problem so no more bad fruit is produced. So should we note where we fall short of the "good fruit" and do our best to fix the problem. Remember, God is patient, kind, and gentle with us, and He is not going to snuff us out just because we might not have the absolute perfect crop yet.
I think the best way to have an ever improving crop of good fruit is to take to heart Jesus' words from John 15: 1-5, which reads:
“1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."
When we stay connected to Jesus, we will truly bear good fruit, and our good fruit will remain and increase over time. Be encouraged, your garden of good fruit will increase over time!
Galatians 5:22-23
As a Christian, the fruit of the spirit as described here in Galatians is something we should all want. If you're like me, it can also be quite difficult at times to attain, or if we do attain it, something happens and all of a sudden, in an instant, we lose it. It's frustrating, but we mustn't give up. Just like a farmer has to carefully tend his crops, watering, fertilizing, keeping the pests away, so do we have to tend our own "garden of fruit" to make sure that what we're producing is good fruit and not bad fruit. But the farmer isn't discouraged if he has to throw away one bad tomato as long as the overall crop is good. And the farmer will likely note what went wrong, maybe a pest got in or his irrigation system broke down, and he'll fix the problem so no more bad fruit is produced. So should we note where we fall short of the "good fruit" and do our best to fix the problem. Remember, God is patient, kind, and gentle with us, and He is not going to snuff us out just because we might not have the absolute perfect crop yet.
I think the best way to have an ever improving crop of good fruit is to take to heart Jesus' words from John 15: 1-5, which reads:
“1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."
When we stay connected to Jesus, we will truly bear good fruit, and our good fruit will remain and increase over time. Be encouraged, your garden of good fruit will increase over time!
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