“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”—Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT)

You may think of giving away a hand knit gift as a random act of kindness, but I don’t think being kind is a random act. Being kind should be a way of life. Your kindness shouldn’t be situational, but authentic and intentional.

Kindness is one of the fruits of the spirit mentioned in Galatians 5. John 15:5, states, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” This means that Jesus is a part of us. Since Jesus lives in us, then the fruit of kindness should be something that naturally flows out of us.

I know it can be awkward giving your gift away to someone you don’t really know, but sometimes following God can be uncomfortable. Where can you be kind to someone this week? Who could use some encouragement? Is God asking you to be an encourager to someone put in your pathway? If someone came to mind, when I asked you these questions, that is God telling you who you need to reach out to this week.

How can can you be the hands and feet of Jesus if you don’t listen to what God is calling you to do? Ask God to open up your heart to use you. Last month I talked about exercise and asked if any of your daily steps where used to share the love of Jesus in your community. Have you tried doing that?

What would our community look like if we were more focused on loving like Jesus than scrolling through our phones and looking at social media (which I am 100% guilty of doing)? I want the fruits of the spirit of to be evident in all I do, don’t you? 

You don’t have to be a church clergy to share the love of Jesus. Your ministry could be sharing handmade gifts or making a home cooked meal for a neighbor or friend  that might not know the love of Christ. Being obedient and sharing your gifts to whoever you feel God is leading  you to, will bring blessings. I have no idea the ripple effect my knitted gift may have on the person that received it. You or I may not ever see the fruits of what we are doing, but God does and that is the only thing that matters.

Dear Lord:

 Help me to reflect Your character this week. I ask that Your love flow through both my heart and actions as I go about my every day life. I ask that I be more concerned about loving like You than scrolling through my phone during idle time. I thank You that You want to use an ordinary person like me to make a difference in Your kingdom through my hands and heart. Amen!

Will you join me this month in memorizing, Galatians 5:22-23, “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”

 Please make sure you tweet @KnitPrayShare or share your projects on the Knit Pray Share Facebook page or Instagram using the hashtags #ThreadsWithRed #KnitPrayShare and attach a tag to whatever gift you make.