DEAD BROWN LEAVES

Summer’s grip is weakening as autumn prepares to paint the horizon. The leaves will soon begin to fall from the trees, well at least most of them will. Some leaves just don’t want to let go. They may be hard and brown but they manage to remain on the tree through out the cold winds of winter. Yet the relentless grip of these leaves will not last forever. Spring is coming and with it comes the buds of new life from deep within the tree. The old dead leaves from last year are finally pushed off the tree as the new green leaves break forth and life renews itself again.

This may surprise you but I am sometimes like those leaves that don’t want to let go of the tree. You are most likely just like them too from time to time. How? Our old life of sin sometimes is relentless in its grip to hold onto our lives. Some of our bad habits, I mean sin, dies hard. Many of us have had areas of our lives that we wondered if we would ever gain victory and finally be free from the seemingly unbreakable grip of sin. If that’s you then I’ve got some good news for you!

• 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
  Galatians 5:22-23 NIV

Maybe for you it has been your temper, or profane language that has not let go. Perhaps it’s pornography or an addiction that you just can’t break free from. No matter what it is you just wish it was gone and the fruit of the Spirit would be evident in your life. You wish that you could be more loving, patient, kind, or gentle. If only you had more joy, peace and self-control. Why is it that these things sometimes seem to be missing from our lives?

If you are in Christ, then Jesus has not only forgiven you of your sins, but He has caused His Spirit to live IN YOU. Now I want you to know that if the Spirit is alive in you then that life will be revealed from the inside out. In the same way the life of a tree is proved each year as the sap begins to flow, the buds form and new life busts forth in green leaves, so too the Spirit of God in you will transform your life.

The dead leaves of past habitual sin will finally let go because it will be pushed aside by the life of the Spirit. If you look closely you will find the buds of new life growing in your life today. These signs of life don’t just produce green leaves, but fruit that has the seed of life within it to share with others. Sin has been defeated by the life of the Spirit in you. What do you think?