Where are You being Developed?

Ah! Development (The process of developing or being developed). It's an inevitable process. In life, there's a process that we must go through for just about everything: School, work, relationships, you name it. In the midst of getting to where you need to be, you have to go through stages so you are well prepared for the outcome. For Example, We pray to God for plenty of things being blindsided to the fact that blessings don't just fall into our laps. In order to receive the things we pray for, we have to be aligned with God's will. In order to handle the blessings according to his will we must be prepared. While we wait, God works in mysterious ways to prepare us. For GALATIANS 5:22-23 it says, "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Now I know you're probably thinking: What does that scripture have to do with development? Honestly, Everything! Think of it this way: it says the Holy Spirit Produces [synonyms: makes, constructs, builds, creates] this kind of fruit. The Holy Spirit helps us develop in these attributes. God placed the Holy Spirit within us to help lead us in this life. (JOHN 14:16-17a~He will give you another advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.) The Holy Spirit is proof that God lives in us & we live in him (1JOHN 4:13). Now let's break down each of these fruits the Holy Spirit produces: Love:

1CORINTHIANS 13:4-7 describes love as patient, kind, not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand it's own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures every circumstance. Look at those characteristics of love. When you love others do you do so wholeheartedly filled with kindness, patience, and hope without envy or resentment? Do you love your neighbor as yourself? (MARK 12:31) Let's say you don't, but you pray to God for a loving spouse, friends, co workers, or even classmates. To prepare you for those loving people, you must allow God to develop you into a more loving person. Think of a time where God may have placed you in a situation where the only solution to the problem was showing the power of love. I'm sure the option of displaying affection may not have been easy (depending on the situation) but i'm more than sure you didn't feel ashamed or guilty of doing so. Joy:

Everyone desires to have pure happiness. In reality, no one aims to be stressed, depressed, or angry (at least I hope not). Joy is an attribute that grows more once we put our complete trust into God. (ROMANS 15:13~ I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust In him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.) Even in the midst of our troubles, it is best for you to remain joyful because God is working for you, and not against you. (ROMANS 8:18~ Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later). Even if we don't have everything we desire we should remain joyful because God is still magnificent. Think of a time when you only focused on the negative. It seemed like your situation would never change, didn't it? And honestly if you dwell on the negative, it won't. Instead think of the positive things you have in life that you may take for granted: you're alive (obviously since you're reading this), you have access to the internet, you have clothes on your back, food in your stomach, and a place to lay your head, etc. Maybe God has you developing in this stage so you can be joyful for what you do have. He wants you to look directly towards him and be full of joy in his presence. Now Peace & Patience basically go hand in hand. When you've mastered patience, you become naturally at peace. Waiting isn't always easy, but once you understand why you're waiting & what you're waiting for it makes a huge difference. So let's say you're in a situation as of now where you're anxious and don't know what's next. You pray and pray about it, but your circumstances seem to stay the same so you grow impatient. Since you're growing impatient, you try to do things your own way but it fails because it was not God's plan (PROVERBS 19:21~ You can make many plans, but the Lord's purpose will prevail), so now you're anxious again. First. I want to tell you that God doesn't want you to be anxious. He doesn't want you to be fearful or stressed and so forth. He wants you to give ALL of your worries and cares to him, for he cares about you (1PETER 5:7). I know that seems hard to do when everything doesn't appear to be working in your favor, but that's why we're supposed to live by believing and not by seeing (2CORINTHIANS 5:7). If this situation describes you, your situation will not change until you completely understand that if you look forward to something you don't yet have, you must wait patiently and confidently (ROMANS 8:25) so then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your heart and minds as you live in Christ Jesus (PHILIPPIANS 4:7). Once you believe that God is preparing you to receive more than what you asked for, you won't mind waiting. If God isn't allowing you to settle for less, Why settle? Kindness, Goodness, and Gentleness: Throughout the Bible it commands us to be kind and loyal (PROVERBS 3:3a), to avoid quarreling and slander (TITUS 3:2), and to do good to everyone whenever the opportunity is given (GALATIANS 6:10). Let's say you prayed and asked God to work on your heart. You asked to become more righteous, helpful, and gentle. No better opportunity than for him to place you in a situation where your heart is tested right? For example, someone may offend you or rub you the wrong way. Instead of being rude back, you could use that opportunity to respond with kind words.. for kind words are like honey. Sweet to the soul and healthy for the body (PROVERBS 16:24). Or let's say, you see someone in a time of need. Instead of neglecting them & putting them off until later, you help them. For MATTHEW 5:16 says to let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your Heavenly Father. Ever did something good for someone and right afterwards, they say "God bless you."? I'm sure it's because they recognized the goodness of God working through you. Faithfulness: In this sense, faithfulness relates to your obedience to God. It's more than just believing in and accepting the Lord. You should love him enough to remain faithful to him. Don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves (JAMES 1:22). In order to follow God, you have to give up your own way, take up the cross, and follow him (LUKE 9:32). Faithfulness/Obedience can also go further beyond his commandments too. Let's say, God has blessed you with a ministry, gift, special talent, or calling. In order for your audience to become multiplied you have to be trusted with little to be trusted with more. (LUKE 16:10a~ 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). If you complain about only sharing the Good News to 10 followers, how can God trust you enough to give you 100? You have to start some where. If you're in this predicament, I suggest that you remain faithful/consistent in executing the gift God has supplied you with so you're trustworthy enough to advance to the next level. Last, but certainly not least, Self Control: (You can also read my post about self control here: https://therealdani.wixsite.com/theunshakabletruth/single-post/2017/08/12/The-Importance-of-Self-Control) As followers of the Spirit, we cannot fall into the desires of our flesh. Our flesh desires to do evil, but the Spirit seeks righteousness. The two are always constantly at battle (GALATIANS 5:17). Since we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures (TITUS 2:12a) self control is so important. A person without self control is like a house with its doors and windows knocked out (PROVERBS 25:28). Without self control, you'll literally give in to every desire you have whether it's good or bad. So it's best to train your body like an athlete, training it to do what it should (1CORINTHIANS 9:27a). So let's say, you're struggling with self control and you ask God for help. Situations may occur that will test your self control [& obedience]. The Lord may even allow Satan to tempt you in order to test your faith, just as he did with Job (JOB 1:12). For example, God asks of you to remain sober and vigilant (1PETER 5:8). Let's say you haven't smoked or drank in months or maybe even years. You go to a get together with some friends, and someone tempts you to take a drink. At that moment this is where self control should kick in. It's either you allow the Holy Spirit to guide you (By saying no) or you allow your flesh to take over (by accepting the drink). By simply saying no, you are displaying self control. It is nearly impossible to escape temptations in various forms, but God will always help us. He won't allow the temptation to become more than we can bare, and he will show us a way out so we can endure (1CORINTHIANS 10:13). After reading all of this, ask yourself; Which Spirit of the fruit am I being developed in? I'm sure there's many other tests that God has administrated to you in order for you to become more developed in the Holy Spirit. The only way we can better ourselves is by passing the ongoing tests we endure as we go through life. And if you find yourself going through various forms of the same situation over and over again, remember that a lesson is only repeated until it's officially learned. Once you've learned it, God will be more than glad to promote you onto the next level.