Reflections of Grace 24: Walking in the Spirit, part 1: How do I walk in the fruit of His Spirit on my daily journey?

Subscribe: RSS

Galatians 5:22-23 Amp says: ^“But the fruit of the Holy Spirit the work which His presence within accomplishes is love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness, Gentleness (meekness, humility), self-control (self-restraint, continence). Against such things there is no law.

How do we have self-control when we are angry? How do we persevere when we feel beaten down and are weary? How do we find patience when we want it now?
Freedom!! What a glorious word. We all want to be free. But so few are. Galatians makes an astonishing statement about Christian freedom. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free…stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
Not a life of condemnation and failure attacking you on every corner, but a life of walking through the good and the trials, and stay in His peace. How does that happen?
This is about letting Christ have access to everything within us needing alteration, and giving Him permission to get very personal with us. The enemy will do everything he can to discourage you from allowing God into the deepest places of your heart.
If Satan succeeds then you lose. On the other hand, if you grant God full access to every part of you over the next few weeks you will never be the same…
Let’s consider Galatians 4. One of the key themes is son ship and daughter ship. Galatians 4:6 “…because you are sons, God sent the spirit of his son into our hearts, the spirit who calls out, Abba Father”…
The moment you believed in Jesus Christ his genealogy became your own. Your heritage became a holy one. You became royalty. You are a child of promise. Romans 8:14-16.
And we are added to the family of God by way of blessed adoption. Ephesians 1:3-6
Both Romans 8 and Galatians 4 say that the spirit of Christ given to believers enables them to cry out, Abba Father.
Abba is a term of extreme endearment expressed by a young child to his beloved father, his hero, the one who kisses his scraped knees and dries his fresh tears. Abba would be the word used only for a parent who was familiar, available, trustworthy, and comforting. Literally it is Daddy, my Daddy!!
The Holy Spirit is the spirit of the living God. How are we to understand and relate to God the Spirit? Let’s begin to consider the Spirits many roles in our lives. He works to bring us to salvation. He seals us as member s of God’s family. He leads us as we seek to know and grow in God. The Spirit empowers us to fight Life’s inevitable battles with the world, the flesh and the devil. In every way and at every turn we are utterly dependent on the Holy Spirit of God.
Where is my life going from here?
What is next?
How do I bring you into my longings, Jesus?
What is He going to do to take away this constant feeling of wanting something that I don’t even know what it is?
Remember, Jesus is holding your every longing. He is waiting for you to turn to Him as your only answer. He desires you with a passionate desire to walk with you every minute of the day.
Do what it takes to trust him, whether that means putting yourself out there and sharing or keeping it in your secret chamber where you meet with God. Your longings are not foreign to Him.
From there you begin to learn about His fruit that is yours for the asking.

Galatians 5:16 says “so I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

Coming to understand the Holy Spirit in the sense of profound activity in your life and how He manifests to you is easy to recognize!

Every time you understand the Word of God, the Holy Spirit has manifested Himself to you as a teacher.
Every time you realize God has given you a heart to discern direction, the Holy Spirit has manifested Himself through leadership.
Every time you edify the body of believers through serving them, the Holy Spirit is evidenced as the Giver of gifts.
Every time you express love for someone you never could have imagined even tolerating, you have witnessed the fruit of his spirit.
He prays for you when you don’t have a clue what to pray. The spirit intervenes in our weaknesses, but not in our avoidance. 1^st Thessalonians, tells us to pray continually. But how can we do that without the presence of His spirit to show us how….
He has personality. He is creative, His awareness, His consistency, His protectiveness, His tenderness and His loyalty.
We can quench the spirit of God by saying No to God. But the Holy Spirit never withdraws His presence. We have also noted that that God has an expected end toward which He continually moves us. He desires for us to acknowledge Him as completely sovereign over every decision and direction of our lives.

For more encouragement from Dixie, visit www.ReflectionsOfGraceHome.com