Grow
“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?” Luke 16:10-12
We are all impressed by competent people. People who get things done. But competence isn’t everything. A person’s character is of far greater significance. Indeed, a person who has enormous competence but a bad character is very dangerous, and their activity is likely to lead to disaster sooner or later.
Jesus’ words are wise ones. We need to listen to them carefully. Faithfulness is a key quality and, if someone has proved unfaithful in one area of life, it is likely they will be unfaithful in other areas as well.
If someone shows dishonesty in a trivial matter, it should come as no surprise if they are dishonest on a bigger scale. Our core character determines the way in which we live our lives – whether the issue is large or small, involves our family, business or church.
This emphasises the importance of continually growing our Christian character. As we allow the Holy Spirit to direct our lives, our character will gradually change. His fruit will become increasingly evident in our lives – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).
This fruit is not like normal fruit. It does not have a short shelf life, but lasts eternally. Impressed as we may be by competent people, we all need to long for this amazing fruit which God loves to grow in our lives.
QUESTION
In what ways are you seeking to grow the fruit of the Spirit in your life?
PRAYER
Loving God, help me grow closer to you every day and to welcome the changes that you are bringing about in my life by your Holy Spirit. Amen