Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Blackaby gives a short nod to each of the fruit of the Spirit in his entry for today. And while I agree with him that God desires each item in the list manifest itself in our lives, I am a bit dubious about Blackaby's statement, "It (the growth of the fruits of the Spirit) automatically begins the moment you become a believer. How quickly it happens depends upon how completely you yield yourself to the Holy Spirit's activity."
My concern over that statement is that it makes the process sound so passive. Just yield to the Spirit and all these things will naturally grow like fruit on a tree. As a person who has for years and continues to struggle with many of the fruits listed, I believe a far more active roll is necessary to enjoy the fruit of the Spirit. Prayer, Bible study, meditation, and more are all necessary, and even then are no guarantee.
I have found the fruit of the Spirit to be extremely elusive.
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