A Change in Focus

It's always a sign that I need to pay attention when God shows me the same thing through several different avenues. Lately, I've been reading a lot more and through that, conversations with people and meetings with my mom's groups, I think I'm finally getting the message.

God loves me. And the greatest commandment is to love Him with all my heart, soul and mind. But to truly accept that God loves me and to actually know Him and love Him is so hard. I have no idea why. But I do know that when I am focused on these two simple concepts, that everything else will fall into place.

So often we seem to focus on the “fruit” of our walk, as if that’s supposed to be what we’re trying to accomplish, rather than realize that it is the result. It was like a major revelation to me the recently to realize that the "fruit of the Spirit" is what I bear WHEN I abide in Him. I've been to so many conferences and Bible studies where the speaker or author encourages you to work on producing those fruits. That's the wrong way to go about it! I'm to focus on that which is my life support, that which enables me to even bear fruit...and then I don't do any of the fruit production. He produces the fruit in my life. When I realized this, I felt all at once completely free and at a total loss. I am used to accomplishing things: "producing fruit". Apart from Him, it's not really fruit at all, but an illusion of fruit. I am dependent on Him alone.

So I'm trying my best to give over control, and spend my energy focusing on Him and how amazing it is to be in relationship with the Creator of the universe and the Savior of the world.