Focus on the Root

If you want to grow fruit, attend to the root. On Sunday, we wrapped up our series on the Fruit of the Spirit with a simple thought: if we want fruit, we attend to the root. I told some of my story.

So often, we try to grow the fruit of the Spirit by effort, trying to be more patient, more kind, more self-controlled. But that can be like taping fruit onto a tree. It might look convincing for a while, but it’s not real transformation. Real fruit grows from healthy roots. And those roots are found in being in Christ or ‘remaining in Him’ as Jesus puts it.

But here’s where things get more personal.

Many of us are comfortable with the idea that God loves us. We know the verses. We can say it out loud. But knowing it in our heads and actually living from it are very different things. Beneath the surface, many of us carry quiet beliefs that we’re not enough, that we’re flawed, or that parts of us are unlovable. And that matters more than we think.

Because if, deep down, we struggle to love who we are, it’s incredibly hard to truly love others. Our love becomes filtered through insecurity, defensiveness, or comparison. But when we begin to receive God’s love at a deeper level, and allow it to reshape how we see
ourselves, something shifts.

We begin to accept who we are. Not perfectly, not all at once, but honestly. And from that place, love starts to flow more freely.

This is why love sits at the centre of the Spirit-filled life. Love from God. Love received. Love turned inward in a healthy way. And then love overflowing outward. The fruit of the Spirit isn’t something we manufacture, it’s what grows when our roots are deep in Christ and grounded in love.

So the invitation remains the same: don’t focus first on the fruit. Focus on the root. Stay connected to Jesus. Let His love reshape how you see yourself. Because when you truly know you are loved and begin to live like it, you’ll find that love naturally spills over into the lives of others.

Blessings,

Adam