Fruits

The countdown is underway for the end of school. I know teachers look forward to the summer as much as their students.  We have been busy making some plans for the summer, really just confirming when and who is coming etc.  With 5 children, spouses, grandchildren and their dogs, it is a family circle going on at our house all the time.

I was thinking about how people know us.  In Spanish there are two words for "know".  One refers to knowing facts about someone or something and the other is to really know them personally.  Depending upon which word is being spoken, the listener understands the extent of the person's knowing.  This week as usually, I entered a classroom at one of my schools.  This particular classroom is a self contained classroom for students who currently have a difficult time managing their behavior.  I engaged several students while in the room and as I began to leave, one of them spoke up and said, "Ms. Horn, I knew it was you before I even saw you."  I said "really (profound, huh!).  So I questioned him as to how he knew it was I in the room.  He was covered with a blanket cause the temp in the room was freezing and he was doing his work "undercover".  He spoke up and said, "I knew it was you cause I smelled you".  Not wanting to immediately take an offense to such a comment, I pressed for an explanation.  He said, "I know your perfume.  You wear it everyday."  He was so right.  I wear the same perfume everyday, an expensive gift from one of my daughters for Christmas.

I began to smile cause his statement brought back a very familiar thought and smell that I had of my grandmother.  She always smelled of roses cause of her hand/face creme.  I understood fully his knowledge of me.

However, I began to think further about really how do people know me.  This week I had an interview at one of the high schools in the district and found myself trying to enlighten the interview panel of who I am.  Not too sure how that went but have since given further deliberation of how I really want others to know me.

Matthew 7:16 says "By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?"

So it is by the fruits that we produce that people know us.  Galatians 5: 22-23 tells us what fruits we should exhibit
 ^"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 law."

More things to ponder upon in this race of life.  As I was running today, I was reflecting upon my last several runs which were slow by my standard.  Difficult and certainly lacking due to lack of running periods.  I had a span of several weeks that I did not run which for me really impacts how well I do.  This morning, I was able to cut back on time on each mile, running fast and more solid.  It caused me to think about the Fruits of the Spirit and how they can be weak in our life if we are not walking by the Spirit of God and exercising them daily.  But the more we yield to His Spirit, the more we show love, joy, peace forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  We become "fruiter", all for the glory of God and to bless others.

The question comes to this.  By what fruits do people know us?  How do they recognize us? So start branching out this week. Bearing fruit by living in the Spirit of God, dying to flesh but being propelled by His Spirit. I am running toward that purpose.