Fruit of the Spirit

I feel very blessed to realize that God does grant us the Gifts of His Spirit - even in our times of weakness. However, there are admittedly times in my life that my heart and mind are so filled with concerns, worries, and/or busyness that there is not room for those most precious Gifts! Again, I want to bring to mind the spiritual practices of silence and solitude, scriptural reading and reflection (lectio divino), reviewing our day (Examen), and other "spiritual disciplines" that will bring us nearer our Lord. In these times, He can and will show us His way and fill us with His Spirit.

Two other relevant scriptures in addition to the two in today's devotional are:
     Galatians 5:22-23:   
²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
    2 Corinthians 12:8-10 (NIV)
⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Let us pray for each other that these Gifts of the Spirit will "take over" our lives so that we may become more like our Lord - and help make the world a better place for all.