Enjoying God

Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

This verse lies in the context of Paul's explanation of what it means to live by the Spirit. Although very familiar, this section of Galatians never fails to speak to me.

In 1979, Ray Stedman preached a sermon on love (see Supreme Priority) in which he pointed out that each of the fruit listed is really just a variation of the first one, love. We know from 1 Corinthians 13 that love is patient and kind — both of which appear here as well. We also know from 1 John 4 that God is Love and that if I don't learn to love others with the "agape" love of God, I cannot really know Him. I see each of these fruit not only a variation on Love (and an aspect of God), but also a way to adore His Living Presence in my life. With some help from my wife and friends, we took Stedman's list, added a prayer-phrase of adoration to each, and came up with this:

— Joy is Love enjoying itself … O Lord, en-Joy me with your Companioning Presence.

— Peace is Love resting … My heart is calmed by Your Silence.

— Patience is Love waiting … O Gracious Presence,

— Kindness is Love acting … You are Love! You are so easy on me!

— Goodness is Love choosing … You lead me in my choices with Your Spirit of Truth.

— Faithfulness is Love keeping its word … You never turn Your back to me,

— Gentleness is Love empathizing … You carry me in Your Shepherd-arms through my hard times,

— Self-control is Love resisting temptation … and lead me with Your Strength in the Ways of Your Spirit.

What a wonderful way to enjoy God and to be en-Joyed by God in return. Filled with His Joy, it is so much easier to spread it around. Somehow, I feel that this is what loving God and loving others is all about.

Enjoy everything He can be in your life this week. Amen.

With His Love

~ Jim (and friends)