When people rub up against you, what do they feel? Back in December, while Christmas shopping for my wife, Pam, I found myself sampling the feel of some clothing I was thinking of buying for her. Some felt soft to the touch; others not so much. What is the texture of your life? In one of his letters to the early believers, the apostle Paul described the texture that will be produced by the Holy Spirit’s work in a person’s life:

So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. . . . But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law (Galatians 5:16, 22,23).

For a sobering list of bad fruit, check out Galatians 5:17-21.

My own journey—even last week—proves that when this fruit is growing in me, others receive the goodness of God. And when the Spirit’s fruit is absent, I’m no fun at all to be around!

How do people experience the texture of the Spirit in our lives? Through our mouths, our feet, and our hands—the words that we say, the places our feet take us, and what we do when we get there!

Does your life emanate the goodness of God as reflected in this list in Galatians 5:22,23? Which of these fruit are present in your life on a regular basis? Which are missing?