Growing Fruit

Growing Fruit
I have a confession to make.
Until recently, I couldn't keep a cactus alive.
You know, the plant that practically thrives on neglect? The one that asks for almost nothing? Somehow, I still managed to lose that battle.
My family has witnessed the tragic fate of more than a few houseplants over the years. If there were a support group for neglected ferns and overwatered succulents, some of my former plants would probably be founding members.
But somewhere along the way, something changed.
I discovered that I actually enjoy houseplants. Not only that, but I'm getting pretty good at keeping them alive. My collection has grown, and most of them are thriving. I say "most" because there is one plant that faces a daily challenge: my cat, Kiki.
For reasons known only to her, Kiki has decided that one particular pot of soil exists solely for her entertainment. Every day she digs in it. Every day I clean it up. Every day she returns to continue her work. It's become a battle of wills that neither of us appears willing to lose.
The funny thing about plants is that they teach us a lot about growth.
A healthy plant doesn't produce leaves, flowers, or fruit overnight. Growth happens slowly. Sometimes so slowly that you don't even notice it until one day you realize that something has changed.
Our faith often works the same way.
One of my favorite passages in Scripture is Galatians 5:22-23, where Paul talks about the Fruit of the Spirit:
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."
Notice that Scripture doesn't call them the "fruits" of the Spirit. It's singular: fruit.
These qualities are all part of the same growth process that happens when we allow God to work in our lives.
And just like my houseplants, spiritual growth requires the right environment.
It requires time.
It requires care.
It requires patience.
And sometimes it requires surviving a few attacks from a cat.
As I thought about this passage, I realized that many of us approach these qualities as if they were items on a checklist.
Be more patient.
Have more joy.
Show more kindness.
Practice self-control.
We try harder and harder, and when we inevitably fall short, we become discouraged.
But fruit isn't something we force.
It's something that grows.
The goal isn't to wake up tomorrow and suddenly become the most patient person in Pierce County. If that's the standard, some of us would fail before our first cup of coffee.
The goal is to stay connected to God and allow Him to do the work of transformation within us.
Over the next several weeks, we'll take a closer look at each aspect of the Fruit of the Spirit. We'll explore what these qualities really mean, why they're sometimes difficult to cultivate, and how God develops them in our everyday lives.
Because let's be honest: it's easy to talk about patience until you're stuck in traffic. It's easy to talk about kindness until someone leaves a rude comment online. It's easy to talk about self-control until someone puts a fresh box of donuts in the staff room.
Faith doesn't grow only in the big moments.
More often, it grows in the ordinary moments of everyday life.
The conversations we have.
The choices we make.
The grace we extend.
The challenges we face.
And just like a healthy plant, we may not notice the growth from day to day. But when we look back, we can often see how God has been faithfully at work all along.
So consider this the first watering of the garden.
We'll spend the summer exploring what it means to bear fruit in our lives and how God continues to grow us—even when we're a little stubborn, a little messy, and occasionally as difficult as a cat digging in a flowerpot.
I'm looking forward to growing together.