Juicy Fruit of the Spirit #6: Goodness

Yesterday morning, I was reading to Joshua from the Message. This passage was part of what we read, and I thought it was appropriate in praying for Joshua to demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit in his life:

Luke 13:6-7

Then he [Jesus] told them a story: "A man had an apple tree planted in his front yard. He came to it expecting to find apples, but there weren't any. He said to his gardener, 'What's going on here? For three years now I've come to this tree expecting apples and not one apple have I found. Chop it down! Why waste good ground with it any longer?'"

Please join us in praying for Joshua to bear "fruit" in his life, the fruit of the Spirit. Today's fruit is goodness. When thinking about goodness, I remember Shawn's mom telling me that she always told Shawn he had to live up to his "Good" name. Joshua was given this same name, and as Proverbs 22:1 says, "A good name is more desirable than riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold." My mom constantly teases me about having a "Good" name. When Joshua was in the hospital, most of the doctors and nurses would come over and say "Good, Baby Boy. Oh, isn't that cute?" or "We're looking for the Good baby. Ha!" I pray that Joshua lives up to his Good name.

Another verse I thought of immediately was Psalm 23:6, "Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever." This reminded me of one of my favorite jokes: 'Lord, I'm okay with goodness and love, but why does Shirley have to follow me all the days of my life?'

Please join me in praying for Joshua today: Father God, we thank you that you have given us goodness through your Holy Spirit. We pray that Joshua's life would bear much fruit, and that he would demonstrate goodness. We ask that he would not just do good acts for the sake of goodness itself but that he would demonstrate this fruit because he truly has an honest desire to serve you and loves others. We thank you for his Good name, and we pray that he lives up to it. We praise you for developing Godly character in him from a young age and ask that he would grow to know you and love you. We praise you and thank you. In Jesus' powerful name, AMEN!