“The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with his justice and righteousness.
He will be the sure foundation for your times,
a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.” Isaiah 33:5-6 NIV
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
Photo by Debby Hudson on Unsplash
Picture in your mind an apple tree loaded with ripe, red apples. Big, juicy apples are weighing down the branches until they brush the ground. Below, dozens have fallen and cover the ground like a quilt. You have no doubt what kind of tree it is. It’s an apple tree!
Then picture another tree. It has no fruit hanging on the branches. There’s no fruit lying on the ground. There’s no fruit anywhere. You don’t know what kind of tree it is!
Galatians 5:16-26 explains how to produce the fruit of the Spirit and cast aside the lust of the flesh.
“16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
Pay special attention to the bolded words, “walk by the Spirit”. The Greek word for walk is peripateo. It means “follow as a companion”. If we live our lives with the Holy Spirit as our constant companion, we will not entertain those fleshly desires.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” (NIV)
Verse 25 says, “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”
The Greek word translated “keep in step” is stoicheo. It means “to march in military rank, to conform to.”
It’s just like marching in a group. I’ve never served in the military, but I once marched in a band. In the 6th grade I was a majorette. The most exciting event of the summer was the 4th of July parade! I knew I had to keep in step with the others or I would stand out like a sore thumb. (I also had to try really hard not to drop my baton!)
To keep in step while marching means following the voice of the one calling the cadence. You don’t watch your feet! Likewise, keeping in step with the Spirit means following Him, focusing on Jesus and His precious Word.
Doing those things will produce the Fruit of the Spirit in your life and everyone will know what kind of “tree” you are. These are the characteristics that will define you: love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Don’t be discouraged if your fruit doesn’t develop overnight. It takes an apple seed 5 to 10 years to make an apple! But when we’re serious about our relationship with God, He will change us into the likeness of His Son, Jesus Christ. Our part is to “keep in step” with the Holy Spirit. God will do the rest!
May God bless you as you yield to His will and follow in His steps, allowing the Lord to develop in you the precious fruit of the Spirit.
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
Featured Image Photo by Nathan Hulsey on Unsplash
“The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
and he delivers them.” Psalm 34:7 NIV
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
“Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble,
and he saved them from their distress.
14 He led them from the darkness and deepest gloom;
he snapped their chains.
15 Let them praise the Lord for his great love
and for the wonderful things he has done for them. Psalm 107:13-15 NLT
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
Photo by Carolina Jacomin on Unsplash
“In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” Acts 20:35 NIV
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
“But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love” Psalm 33:18 NIV
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
If you’re the most eloquent speaker on the planet and thousands attend your conferences and buy your books, but you don’t show God’s love to people, God says you are an “annoying distraction”!
If you have such strong faith that you can perform miracles, but you don’t love your fellow man, you’re just a “nobody”.
If you sell everything you own and give it all to feed the poor, but you don’t spread God’s love, it does you no good at all.
Let that sink in for a minute!
“If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love [for others growing out of God’s love for me], then I have become only a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal [just an annoying distraction].
And if I have the gift of prophecy [and speak a new message from God to the people], and understand all mysteries, and [possess] all knowledge; and if I have all [sufficient] faith so that I can remove mountains, but do not have love [reaching out to others], I am nothing.
If I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it does me no good at all.” I Corinthians 13:1-3 AMP
Several years ago, I was questioning something being taught at the church I was attending. It seemed to me like too much emphasis was being put on money and prosperity. I decided to re-read the New Testament. I read it three times in a row, looking for what God considered most important.
I kept track of the number of times each topic was presented in the Word of God. Every time faith was taught, I tallied it. I did the same for every topic that came up including healing, prayer, prosperity, hope, joy, mercy, love, and many other topics.
Do you know what I discovered? Overwhelmingly, the most frequently mentioned topic of the New Testament was love! If love was the most talked about topic, it must be really important! I knew that if I understood nothing else, I needed to understand what matters most to God – love. I began to study it in depth.
“As you have heard from the beginning, His command is that you walk in love.” 2 John 6
It was like God was teaching me that this is what He wanted me to study. This is what He wanted me to learn.
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.” Matthew 22:37-39
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 NIV
With Love,
Cindy
Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
Photo by Lydia Torrey on Unsplash
8 “I have no complaint about your sacrifices
or the burnt offerings you constantly offer
9 But I do not need the bulls from your barns
or the goats from your pens.
10 For all the animals of the forest are mine,
and I own the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every bird on the mountains,
and all the animals of the field are mine.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
for all the world is mine and everything in it.…
14 Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God,
and keep the vows you made to the Most High.
15 Then call on me when you are in trouble,
and I will rescue you,
and you will give me glory.” Psalm 50:8-15 NLT
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
Jesus said, “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing … likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.” Luke 15:4-5, 7 NKJV
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
“He will feed his flock like a shepherd.
He will carry the lambs in his arms,
holding them close to his heart.
He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young.” Isaiah 40:11 NLT
“The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.” Psalm 23:1 NKJV
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
realchristianwomen.blog
Photo by Gibbon FitzGibbon on Unsplash
Real Christian Women 