Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no lawAre we sure about that? Are we sure there is no law against it? I ask because it seems to be almost our nature to avoid showing any fruit. Lets think about it for a minute..........
Okay, minutes up.. if you completely agree with me and you totally understand it.. good....... for the other 99.9% of you, keep reading and we shall discuss !!
There are a lot of human beings ( and I use the term loosely) out there that are just flat nasty, hateful, snotty, rude , classless, self centered , mouth breathing vagabonds with nothing better to do than make everyone around them miserable. You know these folks, you walk the other way way when you see them, you check the time on your wrist even though you're not wearing a watch just to avoid eye contact with them. Eye contact with them will turn you into a stone just like Medusa's head after all !! Yes these folks are allowed to roam loose in the world. They, however, are not the problem, we are !! Who are we then ?? We are the rest of the folks who are just too ( deep breath ) lazy-preoccupied-over burdened-culturally desensitized-distracted-busy-self focused-meandering aimlessly- LOST people. Yeppers, we're lost. We wonder thru each day in a fog of overstimulation!! We plug our way through the forest each and every day never seeing a single tree. Not one....... not a single tree. We don't see this as a problem until we trip over a root, or somebody else cracks our backside with a branch !! We simply don't see the problem until it is thrust upon us , then we just feel sorry for ourselves.
Let me test you.
Do you know the names of any of the employees at that gas station you stop at on the way home from work? I know you most likely know their face, but can you, do you, call them by name?
Do you know the names of anyone who works your favorite drive thru window?
The last time some guy tried to cut you off on the highway, did you think to yourself, " oh, this guy must be late for something important, maybe I should give him a little more room and let him get in front of me" ?
That lady sitting at the table next to you last Wednesday, did she have a good day? You would know if you asked, did you ask?
You go to the grocery once a week ( or twice, or almost daily like me ) do the folks in the checkout line know your name? Do you know their's, their husband/wife/kids names? Do you know if they having a good day or not?
When you address a person you do not know, do you smile , say please and thank you, and yes ma'am, no sir?
Unless you answered 100% YES , of course....... then you're qualified to be, " the rest of us" . Yep, you're in the club, you're the problem !!
Okay, now that I have attempted to point out the problem, fruitlessness, lets talk about it for a minute. Yes, I know you're still reading becuase you're just as guilty as me.
Why did you not answer yes to all of the above questions? I know why, same reason as me, you don't have time, don't have the energy to make the effort, don't really care all that much, and you judge the person as not being enough a part of your life to concern yourself with them. They are just there, there to do what they do and you are just passing by. Like it or not, that's why.
There is also another reason. It is easier not to be kind, not to be gentle. It's more difficult to excersize self control than it is to just go with what you feel. We would much rather pick a scab than to help a wound heal, its easier and a lot more fun, right !! It comes more naturally to sit around making fun of your coworkers toupee that looks like a Chia Pet gone horribly wrong, than it does to sit down and have coffee with a guy and listen to him tell you about his wife leaving him, his dog dying, and his kids alcohol and drug problems. I mean, given the choice, which would you pick? The first option is easy, and for a lot of us, a daily activity. The second choice is tough and more rare. We don't even need to focus on stuff that extreme, but it seems to be much easier to verbally destroy others, even when they are not around, even when we don't even know them, than it is to verbally build others up. We are quick to see the faults in others, the differences, the oddities ( although Walmart makes it all too easy). We are slow to praise others, it is more difficult. We feel odd making positive remarks about each other, it is almost as if our culture discourages the activity. Granted, people also discourage that activity, some folks are just hard to be kind to, but that's no excuse. Why do we have the habit of trying to build ourselves up by tearing others apart? Can we really better ourselves that way, does it really make us feel better, bigger, stronger, to demean others?
Is it in our nature to be destructive? Is it in our nature to be negative towards others? Is the negative the only thing we see in each other, have things gotten that bad? Or, maybe, just maybe, its not the only thing we see, just the first thing? Yes, I know very large women with messy nests they call hair should not wear really really tight bright green pants...... but , is that a reason to not be kind to them? Yes, I know some that kid in the drive thru window with a hole in his ear the size of a quarter and golf tee stuffed through the bridge of his nose is entertaining to talk about, but , is that a reason to not show him some forbearance, not to bear with him, not to show him some grace?
Quick side note: For those of you who at this moment are thinking, " well, it's not like I say anything in front of them, they can't know what I say to my friends" I have some bad news for you. Having grown up as ' that guy' , we know ! We know what you're thinking, we know what you're going to say later, we just hope you wait till later to say it. I am as guilty as the next guy, but let me tell you for certain, we know. It becomes awkward when you look at it that way. I judge people wrongly, but I unfortunately know they know I am doing it. When people judge me, I know it. Why is nothing ever said then? It's just too awkward to confront casually, that's the only reason. So the next time you look at the mom who has totally lost control of her kids in the grocery, the kids who are opening the cereal boxes in the aisle and using the Cheerios as confetti, and don't say anything until you get back with your good mom friends, remember this, she knows what you think of her, and what you're going to say...
So, now what ??
We fix it. We change it. We correct it. We apply ourselves. We work towards making the world better, one small act at a time. We grab some fruit and wear in on our heads !! ( what did he say ) Ever notice that when someone wears a hat, you always notice the hat? It is right there, right out there for everyone to see. What if we wore our fruit on our heads? That way people would not have to look to find it, they would see it right away. A lot of us who have fruit, don't always put it out in front in plain sight for everyone to see, we judge and only show the fruit to those we deem worthy. It's kinda like that guy selling knock off Rolex watches out of his trench coat. When only open our coat to expose our fruit to people whom we choose. We all need fruit hats instead.
Okay, so if you're on board with me, what do we do, how do we wear a fruit hat?
Well, step one is reverse our thinking. Typically we think about how we feel and pay attention to what others do.. Step one is to flip that scenario and think about how others feel and pay attention to we do.
Lets go back to the quarter sized hole in ear golf tee wearing drive thru guy. How is his day going? Ask him, no seriously, ask him ! " here is your change, receipt at next window'......... thank you sir, and hey, how's going? its a beautiful day today, I hope you get off work in time to enjoy a little bit of it." Odds are he is going to look at you funny because he wasn't expecting that, but trust me, if you do it , and then do it again next time you're there you will slowly transform in his mind from that really odd person into that cool person he looks forward to seeing every once in a while. Yes, its incredibly awkward at first, but it gets easier.
Use your manners. Please and thank you, have a nice day, how are you doing, etc. Address people as ma'am and sir is great, but if you can avoid the creepy getting in their business factor, find out their name. I can honestly say that when I walk in to BP to get gas I can ask Rona how she is feeling today. I know she is almost fully recovered from the stroke she had a year ago, and if I am alone she asks " where is that cute little girl of yours tonight" If Gracie happens to be with me however, Rona and I never speak to each other, she talks to Gracie !!
For crying out loud.......... SMILE....... people are not invisible. Make eye contact with them, talk to them, smile at them. Treat every person you see with respect. Let me say that again, slowly this time.. treat every person you see, every single one, with respect. Act like they are really people, because in reality, you know what, they ARE people; People with feelings, challenges, needs, etc.... they are real living people whom you have the opportunity to address in a kind, loving, gentle, self controlled manner..
The concept I am talking about here isn't all that difficult. The difficult part is understanding that we are not doing it. The challenge is to deliberately and diligently try to show all of the fruit, all the time, to everyone. The difficulty is in not judging and picking and choosing who we show our fruit to. The hard part is admitting we are jerks ( hi, my name is Chris, and I am a jerk) and then working at being a freak with a fruit hat.
How cool would it be if we could suddenly accomplish this task?
What if we actually treated everyone with respect, cared about each person we came across, learned to recognize them as people, as individuals, as human beings. What if we shared grace with each person we see? Let me put it this way, did God give you forgiveness and grace so that you could take all that forgiveness and all the ample grace and put it in your pocket to keep? Of did He give you forgiveness and grace so that you could share it with others, forgive them, and show them as much grace as they need?
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| Arlo Guthry , singer of Alice's Restaurant |
You know, if
one person, just one person does it they may think he's really sick and
they won't take him seriously And if two people, two people do it, in harmony,
they may think they're both strange and they won't believe either one of them
And three people do it, three, can you imagine, three people encouraging one another respecting each other, smiling and being kind. They may think it's an
organization. And can you, can you imagine fifty people a day,I said
fifty people a day putting on a fruit had and loving one another And friends they may thinks it's a movement.
I am officially declaring this the Fruit of the Spirit Movement. Join with me and show each person you see kindness, gentleness, goodness, patience, love, peace, and joy. Join me and put the fruit on your head, wear your fruit hat for everyone to see..........
