What happens when a garden is neglected? Weeds choke out flowers, thorns overtake pathways, and what was once beautiful becomes a tangled mess.
Now imagine stepping into a well-tended garden - vibrant colors, sweet fragrances, and life flourishing everywhere. The difference isn’t simply in the soil’s potential but in the gardener's care.
The Apostle Paul used agricultural imagery in Galatians 5 to remind us that Christian life, in a sense, is like a garden. We have two potential influences vying for control of our hearts: the sinful flesh and the Holy Spirit. Each produces dramatically different fruit.
Philosopher and writer James K. Smith, pulling from Saint Augustine, uses this illustration: Think of your heart as a “love pump.” When the flesh is in charge, that pump is constantly working to draw love, attention, and validation toward itself. The result? A scarcity mindset that produces jealousy, strife, selfish ambition, and envy - what Paul called “the desire of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16).
But when we follow the lead of the Spirit, something beautiful happens. That same love pump begins working differently - our hearts draw from God's infinite love and pump it out toward others. The result is this: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things” (Galatians 5:22-23).
An interesting detail is that "fruit" (in Greek, karpos) is a singular noun here. This isn't nine separate fruits we must strive to produce independently. It’s singular because it’s ordered and produced by one Spirit of peace. One fruit with nine expressions - all driven and framed by love.
Love is mentioned first in Galatians 5:22 because it's the source from which all other spiritual virtues flow. Love is the greatest virtue, according to 1 Corinthians 13:1, by which we live and execute the gifts of the Spirit.
Galatians 5:16-25 gives us the practical steps: “Walk by the Spirit … led by the Spirit … live by the Spirit … keep in step with the Spirit” (CSB). All of us are walking toward something and being led by someone or something - the question is what and whom.
The beautiful truth is that every morning, we can decide: Will I choose the anxious striving of the flesh, or will I invite the Spirit to cultivate His fruit in me?
This choice happens in the small moments when someone cuts us off in traffic, when we’re overlooked for recognition, or when relationships disappoint us. We can either react from the flesh's scarcity mindset or respond from the Spirit's abundance.
No matter what condition your life is in right now, the Spirit of God stands ready to pour out His life-giving presence.
Holy Spirit, I invite You to tend the garden of my heart. Help me walk in step with You today, producing fruit that nourishes others and brings glory to God. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
- Dr. Joel Muddamalle
Provided by "Proverbs 31 Ministries"