Fruit of the Spirit: LOVE

This is the first of a nine post series on the Fruit of the Spirit. Before we delve into the whole thing, let's talk about the Fruit for a while.

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:22-23

You will note that the word fruit is singular, this means that each characteristic described above does not exist in isolation but is part of a whole. In other words, we are not being called to display only love without self-control, or kindness without faithfulness. These are all things that we should strive for.

LOVE

What is love?
We have discussed love on this blog before but let us define it again.

Simply put, Love is a decision to prosper another person above yourself. It means that when you love someone, you consider their needs above your own.

There are many aspects to love. Infact many languages have more than one word for the concept of love. Today we'll look at just a few ways that love is manifested.

Love for one person to another
The bible paints an excellent picture for what love is and what it is not in relation to people loving each other. In 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 it tells us:

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

The bible also tells us that love for one another: 

Is Precious: 

Proverbs 15:17

A bowl of vegetables with someone you love

is better than steak with someone you hate.

Is Edifying: 

1 Corinthians 8:1

Now regarding your question about food that has been offered to idols. Yes, we know that “we all have knowledge” about this issue. But while knowledge makes us feel important, it is love that strengthens the church.

Is Unquenchable: 

Proverbs 17:17

A friend is always loyal,

and a brother is born to help in time of need.

Songs of Solomon 8:6-7

Many waters cannot quench love,

nor can rivers drown it.

If a man tried to buy love

with all his wealth,

his offer would be utterly scorned.

Promotes peace: 

Proverbs 10:12

Hatred stirs up quarrels,

but love makes up for all offenses.

Proverbs 17:9

Love prospers when a fault is forgiven,

but dwelling on it separates close friends.

These scriptures show us how powerful love is. If we learn to love each other the way it is taught in 1 Corinthians 13:4 -7, I'm sure we can all agree that the world would be a much greater place to live. 

Love of People for God

1 John 5:3 tells us something amazing: 

Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome.
This means that our love for God can be demonstrated very easily. If we say we love Him, then what we have to do is pretty simple, keep his commandments! Wow. And here we all thought it meant we had to be at church a certain number of times for the week or serve on as many committees as possible or show our fellow Christians how much doctrine we know. Whilst these things are important, God simply requires one thing from us, that we do what He asks. Doing what He asks shows Him respect and shows Him love. 

Love of Money

This aspect shows us that love can have an evil side. Unfortunately for us, most of the problems we currently face in the world stem from man's love for money. People kill each other so that they can aquire what the other person has. Entire countries are suppressed and their resources stripped because of how valuable they are. We spend billions on war in an effort to control what another country has whilst children are starving all over the world. This list can go on and on and on. The point is that the bible is correct when it says: 

For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. 1 Timothy 6:10 (NLT)

So today, let us learn to exercise love for one another, the way the bible said we should. Let us also remember that God requires that we show love to him in the simplest way possible, just do what He asks. And finally, be reminded that love directed at the wrong thing can cause chaos in the world and in our loves. Let us set our priorities according to God's will and we will be much better off.

Next week, we will exam the second characteristic of the fruit, JOY! 

Devotions like this one and others can be found in the Soul Food Series in Kindle or paperback format. 

To grab a copy, click one of the images below. 

Discussion Day 2

So it's discussion day number two and we'll be taking a look at another excerpt from the same Christian novel. Again, I'm going to tell you which book it is soon, but let's hear your thoughts on this excerpt. Remember it's a discussion so let's have fun! 

Daynia wasn’t sure if she should feel happy or not. She’d been trying to put as much distance between them as possible, but this act of kindness could serve as a game changer.

“Thanks for doing that, I really appreciate it.”

“Anytime Daynia,” he sighed. “You do know that I still care for you right?”

“Did you ever care about me Richard? Come on, answer that question honestly. Did you ever care about me? After everything you put me through, you’ll say that you cared about me?”

“Daynia, look, I’m sorry ok. I know this past year was horrible for you. I was confused about a few things and I mistreated you.”

“Confused? Is that how you act when you’re confused? You lie, cheat and treat people like crap when you’re confused? Ever heard of taking a moment to gather your thoughts? You ignored me, stood me up and made me look like a fool for a year and a half Richard! God forbid that you ever get confused again!”

That last comment hung in the air and continued to sting long after it was said. She was right to be angry with him. He’d been a complete idiot. She was the perfect girl and he treated her like trash. Now there really was no hope for the two of them ever getting back together.

“I’m really sorry Daynia,” he breathed, the sound barely audible. “I know I hurt you, and I’m very sorry. I know that my apology can’t make things better, but I need you to know that I’m really, really very sorry and it makes me ashamed when I think about all the things I did to you.”

“I’ve already forgiven you Richard; I didn’t need your apology to do that. I just don’t understand why you did this to me, that’s all. I mean, the usual excuse that most men give isn’t even applicable here; we had sex every time you wanted to. I did whatever you wanted me to even though it went against my conscience. I was always available whenever you wanted me to be. I never nagged or accused you of anything. I trusted you whole-heartedly Richard. I’ll never understand why you needed to have so many others.”

Richard was silent for several moments. Daynia was spewing venom and it scared him.

Finally, he broke the silence. “I hate to say this Daynia, but maybe you should have nagged and accused. I know you knew what was going on at some point. You may not have had proof, but you had to know that I was lying to you all that time.”

“What!” Daynia shouted angrily.

“Hold on,” he said. “Just let me finish.”

He covered her hand in his with a gentle touch that sent her heart into a nose dive. She fell silent, but before she could succumb to the emotions that threatened to overcome her, she yanked her hand away.

“I’m not saying this is an excuse. I’m just saying that it was easy for me to keep going because you never held me accountable for my actions. You went along with everything I suggested in spite of your convictions. I don’t know if you've ever realized this Daynia, but we men, we’ll misbehave until a woman shows up and hold us accountable. That’s just how we are.”

“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard Richard. There is no way that I’m responsible for your ridiculous behaviour.”

“I never said you were responsible hon, I said you never held me accountable for it.”

The air in the car was suddenly filled with a level of tension that was incomprehensible. Daynia willed the line of traffic ahead of them to disappear, yet their slow crawl towards the city and her home continued at the same agonizing pace. 

Let's hear what you think. 

Discussion Day 1

The following is an excerpt from a Christian novel -  I'll tell you which one in a few days. Today, I would love to hear what you think, not about the story, but about the discussion the characters are having below. Weigh in, air your views, agree, disagree and send your friends to do the same. 

As the weeks rolled by Daynia finally began to heal. Her friends all stood by her, much to her surprise. Ashley held her pitiful form several times while she cried helplessly, but those occurrences were becoming less frequent and she could now function normally at work. She found her way back into her circle of friends with ease and they made her feel like she had never left.

At church, the expected stares accompanied by whispering was almost non-existent and only occurred among the older more judgmental members who’d gone passed the age where they remembered the indiscretions of their youth. Daynia theorized that they remembered quite clearly but chose to remain in a state of total denial as they could not live with their own consciousness. Whatever their reason, their whispering didn’t bother her too much because her God did no such thing. She’d received total forgiveness again and even though she was beating herself up for making the same mistakes all over again, God didn’t hold it against her so she walked with her head held high.

***

“It’s so hard for a Christian woman to find the right mate,” said Ashley. She and Daynia were walking along the beach having some girl time. Ashley made a special effort to do things with her friend these days. She needed the company to help keep her focused.

“Yeah, it is isn’t it? He has to line with God’s plans for you, he has to share your passion for God and he has to be willing to wait for sex.”

“Yup, it’s a tall order, even for men with the best of intentions,” said Ashley.  “That’s why we need to wait for God to do the picking; we can’t do a good job by ourselves.”

“You picked a good one.”

“Yeah, Daniel’s great, but don’t forget that I had to wait a while before he came along. God had to fix him first. In his previous state, I wouldn’t have gone within ten feet of him.”

“So that’s the trick really, we gotta wait till they’re ready.”

“Yeah, take Richard for example, he’s not a bad guy, he just wasn’t ready.”

“Oh come on Ash, you’re gonna tell me that a man who spent a year and a half lying to me is a good guy.”

“Yes Dayn, that’s exactly what I’m saying. He needed time to deal with the ghosts from his past. They don’t go away just because you’re now trying to live for God. It’s a process and he didn’t go through his process."

Daynia walked along silently whilst she pondered what Ashley was saying.

“We all had ghosts remember,” continued Ashley. “You have that horrible relationship with your family and all those bad relationships. I had to learn to love myself and treat my body with respect. Remember how I used to dress when I first started coming to church.”

Daynia laughed out loud. “Yes! I do. Those outfits were rather… um interesting.”

“Exactly! Now, I’m a glamor queen without showing my goods to the whole world. I went through my process. You were doing a good job with yours before Richard. You just need to keep pressing. Know what you want for your life and focus on that.”

Daynia stared at her friend for several moments. “When did you get so wise?” she asked, laughing.

“Oh I don’t know, it just happened,” responded Ashley as she tossed her hair back and held her head high in a look of mock sophistication.

“Whatever!” laughed Daynia as she pushed Ashley into the incoming tide. 

So there it is...let's hear what you think!

Wearing Kindness around your neck!

Are you loving and kind? If you are a Christian you will probably say yes. Love and kindness are words that are or should be synonymous with Christianity. In other words, if you are a Christian, then you should be loving and kind.

Well, unfortunately for some of us, love and kindness are actions, not feelings. You see, love does no one any good if it is not demonstrated. Same goes for kindness. A hungry child is not fed simply because you feel compassion towards them. They only get fed if you get up and feed them.

I watched a pretty disturbing video yesterday where a camera crew and a couple of actors tested the general public on a street corner. They pretended to kidnap a 7 yr old girl (also an actor). This little girl called out for help several times, screaming at the top of her lungs "he's not my dad". Several people passed by (men, women and teens), but no one helped this girl. Over and over, they did their act until finally a group of men, without uttering a word to each other acted in unison. They not only felt compassion or kindness towards the little girl, they acted on it.

That story reminds me of Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan. Our world has conditioned us to think in a "it's not my business" kind of way and even as Christians we adopt that culture. We ignore the plight, not only of our fellow Christians but also of our fellow men in general, thinking that somebody else will help.

The Bible tells us in Proverbs 3:3 (NLT)Never let loyalty and kindness leave you! Tie them around your neck as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart. Something tied around your neck or written deep in your heart cannot easily be forgotten. Let us remember to exercise kindness at all times. Don't leave it to someone else. Don't feel sad and then do nothing about a situation. Your feelings don't help anyone. It's your actions that do.

Go out today with kindness tied around your neck!

Devotions like this one and others can be found in a handy collection in Kindle or paperback format. 

To grab your copy, click here. 

Joana James - Author of From Redemption to Maturity, Trusting God with your Future,   Nightmare at Emerald High & Alana and Alyssa's Secret & Finding Romeo 

All we need is Love

So my mother died. Wow.

One year ago, she found out she had stage four ovarian cancer. It was a rough battle, one that I could barely handle. Many of my posts in the last year were inspired by the depths of the pain I felt during her illness. Only one person could have brought me through all that...God.

My mother was a Christian for the last 44 years of her life. She served God faithfully throughout that time, never looking back. Everybody who knew her, knew of her dedication to Christ. It was easy to love her as she had the heart and attitude of one called to serve. She was a mother to all my friends and countless others. Some even called her mommy too. I remember inviting friends over to hang out or sleep over and their breakfast/lunch/dinner would be brought to them in my room whilst I had to go in search of mine in the kitchen.

She was one of the most self-less people I knew. I remember when I was still a teen, there were two young boys who moved into our neighbourhood. We're a small island and an even smaller community so almost nothing goes unnoticed. Those two boys were under privileged at best. Within weeks they were left on their own by a mother who went off to a different island seeking work. For six months, those boys were on their own. They had no food and no money. The older of the two was no more than 12 years old at the time. But those boys didn't starve. Not whilst my mother was on watch. There was no way she would allow that to happen. I remember her waking early every morning to prepare breakfast for them. I remember her adding items to our grocery list just for them; we weren't rich and money was always tight but on the meager amount of money that she had she would find a way.

Things like that helped shape me. I didn't understand her drive or her desire to help others at the time, but I knew that she was something special. She didn't have a college degree or even a secondary school education, but she did what she could to change the world and her efforts were not in vain. Several years later, the older of the two boys met me in a store and couldn't stop thanking me on behalf of my mother. He was all grown up, gainfully employed and a contributor to society. Only God knows what would have happened to that boy had my mother not stepped in.

Years later, I saw her kind heart in action again with another neighbour,  this time an older woman near the end of her life. This lady had two children, a boy and a girl, however none of them were around to help her. She was getting older and weaker and unable to even feed herself. So my mother stepped in. For a period of about two years my mother bathed and fed this lady. Again, from her own money, she would buy food, medicine, adult diapers and pay the utilities at the house until the lady passed.

Just before she died, I visited her and she was rather weak. Now, she was the one who needed to be bathed, fed and changed. Somehow though, she couldn't bare the thought. She said something that really struck me, she said "The very same thing I did for Ms. G , somebody now has to do for me".

In that one sentence, I learned the lesson of a lifetime. You NEVER know where life will take you. One year ago my mother was a plump 62 year old rocking her senior years. She had better fashion sense than me and probably had more fun than me too. By the time she passed away,  at age 63, she was completely emaciated;  the cancer had sucked the life out of her. She went from strong and vibrant, to frail and helpless in almost no time at all. None of us are invincible. Nor are we immortal. My mother lived a very simple life and she lived it with a very kind heart. She worked hard and took care of her six children the best way she knew how. Even to her death, she was more worried about us than about her own self.

So today, I've learned the lesson that my mother obviously understood. In Matthew 22, Jesus gave two commandments, love the Lord thy God with all your heart and love your neighbour as you love yourself. Mom followed both those commandments till the day she died, and I will too.

Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37- 40

Joana James - Author of From Redemption to Maturity, Trusting God with your Future,   Nightmare at Emerald High & Alana and Alyssa's Secret & Finding Romeo