Week 1: Patience

Galatians 5:22-23

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 week's fruit of the spirit is patience! I thought it would be fun to decorate my walls with the fruit of the spirit to remind myself that I should be living patiently, kindly, and joyfully not just for a few weeks, but everyday.

But what exactly is patience? Here's a definition:

I've always thought of myself as a patient person. I've never had trouble waiting in a line, since I'm never really in a rush. Now I realize that I might not be as patient as I thought. Sometimes, I look forward to the future so much, I complain when time doesn't move fast enough. I finished my last exams of high school EVER this week and I kept thinking I can't wait until school's done or I can't wait for summer especially when an entire week of exams felt like it lasted a month. I kept thinking about the summer, and going to England next year, and during this stressful time, I'll admit I was pretty impatient. Getting through school and work was tedious, boring, and difficult to do, but knowing that there are greater things to come helped me get through this year.

Now that summer is here, I'm excited for the mission trip in July and then bible school in September. But I've been having trouble deciding what to do when I come back from bible school next year. Should I go to university? Should I work? In today's busy world, it seems like if you don't have a plan for everything, you'll be walking in a race that everyone else running. I've been praying about my future, asking God to tell me what he wants me to do in my life, but I'm still not sure what that is. It would be great to know what's in store, but I'll just have to wait and trust that God's plans are greater than mine and that He will take care of me every step of the way.

Fruit of the Spirit Challenge!

Galatians 5:22-23

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. 

I've always been able to recite the fruit of the spirit, since I memorized this verse as a kid. One year at camp, the theme was the fruit of the spirit. Every week, we focused on one or two fruits, and by the end of the summer, we had completed an entire cut out tree. Even though I can name all the fruits, I thought I should take the time to learn about each one separately.

That's why I decided to start the Fruit of the Spirit Challenge. Over the course of nine weeks, I'm going to attempt to live out, find examples and learn about the fruit of the Spirit. Verse 25 says "Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." I'm hoping that by focusing on one fruit a week I'll be able to have a better understanding of them, and I hope it will help me live a life that includes each of these fruits.

Week 1: Patience
Week 2: Goodness
Week 3: Peace
Week 4: Love
Week 5: Gentleness
Week 6: Kindness
Week 7: Self Control
Week 8: Faithfulness
Week 9: Joy

I'll be keeping track of each week in my journal, and then write up a post before the new week. If you'd like to join me, I'd love to hear what you experienced and learned each week too!