Human character isn't formed on a sunny day at the beach. It's forged in the fires of adversity. When things go wildly wrong in our lives, we discover the limits of our character. Adversity isn't just hardship. It's the soil where God grows the fruit of the Spirit in your life.
How does Holy Spirit create this character in us? Galatians 5:22-23 but the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Christlike character isn't something we passively download from the Holy Spirit. No, it's a process God uses to transform us from the inside out.
It's how God teaches us to love. Agape, the only from God love is learned as we walk through our daily lives. Some translators say that Galatians 5:22-23 actually means that the fruit of the Spirit is love and that all other character traits listed there are actually different expressions of love.
I find that very powerful in my daily life. For example, what if I see patience as an act of God's love for the incompetent cashier who got my order wrong three times in a row? Wouldn't it change the way I respond? Or what about the server who's chatting with a friend for five minutes while I'm sitting in a restaurant waiting for her to bring me a menu?
Seeing patience as an act of love empowers me. I found the same is true for all the fruit of the Spirit
Spirit grows character fruit in us when we encounter difficulties and then choose to surrender our difficulties to Him. He empowers us to respond with grace and strength. And seeds of character fruit are grown in our lives. It starts first with our jobs, our marriage, and everyday relationships. God uses the natural things to grow his character in us.