“I am spiritual, but not religious.” A friend of mine told me that as we walked along a trail in Hershey Park. “What does that mean?” I asked him. “Well, I don’t believe in all of this God stuff, but I like to think of myself as a spiritual person.” This is trendy among the culturally elite in our country. Having moved beyond God, they like to think of themselves as, well, God. I once heard Russell Dilday say, “If you are living like there is no God, you better be right.”
Paul contrasted life in the Holy Spirit with life in the flesh. The latter led to all kinds of evil. But life in the Spirit produces the most beautiful fruit. Take time to read the list and breath between each word. The fruit of the Spirit is "love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control.” We cannot naturally produce and maintain these qualities. But the God who made them produces them within us as a tree grows fruit.
To be sure, there are spirits in our world. But there is only one Holy, life-giving Spirit. He alone can give us life. Since he has given us new life in Christ, we should walk in step with him. Melanie and I get to walk together more these days. One day recently, she said, “You are walking fast today.” I modified my pace because being with her was more important than finishing the walk. So it is with the Holy Spirit. In prayer today, we may recognize his perfect cadence, and keep in step. “Walk in the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh” (5:16).
