Читать книгу When Hearts Heal - Linda K. Estes - Страница 31

27…HEART’S GARDEN

Good morning! One of the things I love about where I’m living now is that I see neighbors daily. I hear them as they come and go from their houses and when they’re out in their yards. I can hear the mail lady when she’s on our street. And likewise I hear all of the trash trucks as they come down the street, as well as, the FedEx and UPS trucks, too. Those reminders of having other people physically present in the area which I live are really, really cool. This morning when I went out to put a bill in my mailbox I noticed I had a box on my front porch. It was a box of homegrown tomatoes and cute little flowers that came from my neighbors. Needless to say there was a BLT in my future.

As I was thinking about how that gesture from their garden blessed me, I started thinking about the garden growing in my heart. Sometimes my heart produces beautiful fruit like the tomatoes that I received. But unfortunately, other times I have forgotten to pull the weeds in my heart. And even on prompting from the Holy Spirit to take care of the weeds, I find a reason why it’s not the right time to deal with them.

God wants good fruit to be produced in our lives so He loves to meet us there in our heart’s garden. What I’m learning more each day is that the Lord is all over helping us pull those weeds so that the fruits of the Spirit can come forth from our heart. Galatians 5:22 lists those fruits that show others that we belong to God. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” When we keep our hearts free of known sin, we bless God and receive the blessing of having an overflow of fruit from our heart.

Holy Spirit, please help us examine our heart on a regular basis so that any weeds that are in the way of Your producing good fruit in our spirit can be removed. May others see those positive fruits displayed in our life, drawing them closer to Jesus. Amen.