the fruit of the spirit page 3

the fruit of the spirit page 3 by ric Gustafson


Amy rang the doorbell. She noticed that the yard was not being kept up like it usually was.
Her friend's voice yelled from inside. " Come in".
She walked in to notice her friend running down the stairs to the basement with a basket of dirty clothes.
" Amy, come in" Elaine replied as she turned on the laundry room light. " Come downstairs and we'll talk".
Amy walked down some creaky wooden stairs to a small room. There her friend was putting dark clothes into a washer. " Elaine, what's happened since the last time we spoke?".
" Well" she replied as she took whites out of the basket and put them into a pile. " I believe that the love in our marriage has come back".
Amy smiled. " That's good".
She put soap into the washer and turned it on. " But right now I don't feel joyful about anything".
Elaine sighed. " For the past week, I haven't felt joyful to do much of anything". She sighed again. " It took a lot of effort even to do this laundry".
" Elaine, you should be joyful already".
" What do you mean?".
Amy smiled. " Because you are a Christian". Her voice hesitated. " You should be joyful".
" Why?".
" Because Jesus saved you and you are his forever".
" That's true". She grinned as she watched the washer. " I had forgotten about that".
" Because of the Holy Spirit  in us" Amy said with a smile. " The seed of joy is also in us".
Elaine frowned. " Sometimes I am joyful and sometimes I am not".
" Your joy will increase". She hugged Elaine. " And the joy in your marriage will increase too".
Elaine grinned. " That's good".


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Peace and God's blessings. Love Ric