December 16

“...I [did not] see one wrinkle of annoyance or rebellion in my friend...this was not natural for [her], but it was for the One who had come to live His life in hers.  Patience and self-control are both fruits of the Spirit.  They are ‘natural’ only to God.”  Eugenia Price, S.P.S., 12/4

As I read Eugenia’s account of her friend’s reaction to her car being smashed into and the subsequent delay in opening her business for the day I got a picture of what it would feel like if I was able to behave this way.  I immediately wanted to take the credit.  No wonder those moments of bearing the Spirit’s fruit never last for long!  My pride has horned in on the glory, which, of course, causes the Holy Spirit to have to step back into the shadows. I’m beginning to understand now that it is indeed “natural” for me to be self-centered, impatient, unloving....all the things I try not to be.  If I would just realize that I can never expect to be any different, perhaps I will quit trying to be so in my own right.  Instead, I must focus on what Christ can and does do in my life, if I will just let Him.  He can be all the things I want to be in my life.  He can be all the self-control, all the patience, all the love I need in order for my life to exhibit these qualities.  Without Him, no matter how much I’ve practiced it, it cannot be there for me.  It’s in those crisis moments I most often discover who has really been living my life for me. 

“In him we live and move and have our being.”  Acts 17:28a