A Year with the Fruit of the Spirit

I started an experiment last year that went great for a quarter, then it slowly fizzled away - you know how those pesky fires and to do's creep in and take over your best intentions?! So, I'm starting it again this year and would love you to take the ride with me!

I read Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography several years ago. One of the things that really stood out for me was how he determined to be a better man. He wrote down 13 virtues he wanted to be better at and then he focused on one virtue a week, repeating the cycle every quarter. So each virtue was focused on, though not ignored the other weeks, four times a year, and for the rest of his life.

I'm going to try it this year!

My goal is to have captured enough stories and questions and experiences this year to write a Bible study around living the fruit of the spirit by the end of the year. And I need your help!

I decided to focus on the 9 fruit of the spirit and 4 other virtues. They are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control, (and my 4 extras:) frugality, justice, order, and resolution.

Every week I'll blog about the virtue to come and then at the end of the week I'll reflect on what happened, put a definition around the virtue, and find a Scripture that fits. I would love your input as well. What is your definition of the virtue? What are your favorite Scriptures associated with it? What has happened to you this week that exemplified the virtue?

So, next week (starting Monday, Jan 4) is LOVE.

"And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him." (1 John 4:16)

Are you with me?