The Fruit of the Spirit - Pt 7

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23 ESV). The next word is similar to that which we looked at yesterday. It is “goodness” from the Greek “agathosune.” It means "virtue" or "beneficence" even "the act of generous giving, with the implication of its relationship to goodness, to be generous, or generosity." For over forty years Eunice Pike worked with the Mazatec Indians in Southwestern Mexico. During this time she has discovered some interesting things about these beautiful people. For instance, the people seldom wish someone well. Not only that, they are hesitant to teach one another or to share the gospel with each other. If asked, “Who taught you to bake bread?” the village baker answers, “I just know,” meaning he has acquired the knowledge without anyone’s help. Eunice says this odd behavior stems from the Indian’s concept of “limited good.” They believe there is only so much good, so much knowledge, so much love to go around. To teach another means you might drain yourself of knowledge. To love a second child means you have to love the first child less. To wish someone well, simply saying, “Have a good day,” means you have just given away some of your own happiness, which cannot be reacquired. It sounds so foolish to us to think anyone could actually believe this; yet, many find themselves refusing to believe the provision of God and become stingy with their resources. Of course, God desires we be wise in our savings as well as giving; however, I find we err on the side of saving much more than giving! I am so grateful to pastor a church that is not that way. Recently we received a very large gift to the church. We could have easily used the money to finish our project of stained glass and shutters in the sanctuary; however, when I simply announced that Mary and I were going to give enough to pay for one of the six windows, before the week was done, we had more than enough to pay for the windows! Oh, the money we gave, God has already given it back to us! The Holy Spirit works in your life to make you generous. He leads you in your giving. Never again will you have to feel guilty because of a lack of faith when it comes to giving. You will also not have to succumb to the manipulation of man to give. You can simply rely on this precious slice of the fruit of the Holy Spirit growing in you to lead you in your generosity! How’s this part of your fruit?