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Bitterness, rage, anger, and slander seem to be our first language, but if we tune out the loudest voices, we can hear the Spirit guiding us into a life of gentleness, where we don’t scream for attention but are slow to anger and quick to forgive.

Faithfulness is the practical response to a confident expectation that God will do what He said He would. The Spirit develops faithfulness in us so confident in God’s promises that we choose obedience even when the reward doesn’t come when we expect.

Noting the relational shift that occurs in our lives when we’re led by the Spirit, Paul, in Galatians 6, clarifies what it means to be filled with “goodness.” The Spirit calls and empowers us to never give up on goodness and to give it away freely.

When people irritate us, it’s like they’re chipping away at our restraint. However, the duration and intensity of our patience has a lot more to do with the promised return of Jesus. The Spirit empowers us to live patiently in light of eternity.

The type of peace Paul talks about in Philippians 4 isn’t dependent on our circumstances or our sense of safety. It’s a Spirit-facilitated internal restfulness that comes from bringing our needs to God and aligning our thinking with His heart.

The resurrection of Jesus and the Gospel message offers a type of joy and hope that can’t be stolen. We don’t become who we were made to be by going beyond these simple Gospel realities, but by going deeper into them, following the Spirit’s lead.

The love that the Spirit cultivates in us is not self-seeking or self-centered—it’s sacrificial. As we become the people God created us to be, we begin to choose what’s best for others, even when it costs us.

When God came in the flesh and lived as we were intended to, He did so in community. Jesus prayed for who God wanted Him to do life with. Who are the people God has or wants to bring into your life to join you on the path to true community?

Jesus is described in Scripture as coming “full of grace and truth,” yet we often lean into just one or the other. However, when our feelings meet the God full of full grace and truth, they can lead us back to the promise of freedom found in Christ.

Both within and outside the church, there is a lot of pain. But just as Jesus, in John 5, healed an invalid man who felt alone, He wants to meet us on our mats and call us into healing, purpose, and community if we are willing to listen to Him.