The Daily Walk

[bluidkiti]

The Daily Walk Part 4 - Fruit in Season

by Gail Rodgers
New kinds of fresh fruit began showing up on the grocery store shelves this week. Fruit that has been out of season for months is back!

The Bible says that “peace” is one of the “fruits of the Spirit”. Sometimes it feels as if that fruit goes out of season too. As the realities of war came into my living room this week via the media, I thought of that fruit of the Spirit. As the images and stories paraded across the TV screen I could feel my own sense of peace fading and I share in the anxious thoughts of many across the world.
I turned my attention to God’s Word to see again what He has to say about this fruit called peace. I discovered afresh that His peace is never out of season. His peace is one that is offered to our hearts. But how do we pick this fruit? How do we have this peace in the middle of such troubling news? Listen to what Jesus says.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” John 14:27

I was reminded that His peace is a gift. It won’t be found in conventional places or in ways the world offers. It is something directed to the heart and it replaces fear and anxiousness.
This fruit is available all the time. It is never out of season. To pick this fruit, to have this peace, I need to take action. I need to ask God to quiet my heart. I need to pray for those in charge in these troubled days. I need to pray for those who suffer and for those hurt and confused and angry. I need to ask God to take the unease in my own heart and replace it with His gift of peace. I need to share the peace He gives me as I go through my day. This may mean offering to pray together with another who is worried.
Sometimes when the storm rages and the sea of life is not calm, the mighty hand of God comes in, by our invitation, and simply calms us. The peace of heart that comes from the Holy Spirit is a mystery. In the middle of the storm He brings a calm that can be explained no other way than by His divine care. We receive it in order to share it.
Ask God today for His fruit of peace in your heart and mind. Ask Him for an opportunity to share that fruit with those around you who need His peace in their heart today too.
prayer & reflection

Heavenly Father,
Today our hearts are heavy with the reality of war in our world. Please give Your divine peace to our hearts and to our minds. Remind us to pray for others and with others as we look to You for peace in our hearts and also in our world. We ask you to be with those whose responsibilities, emotions and thoughts are overwhelmed with the weight of it all.
Grant Your strength, wisdom and Your peace in the name of Jesus we pray,
Amen.