I thought this quote on the fruit of the Spirit from the late John Stott was incredibly insightful. He writes, “The Christian should resemble a fruit-tree, not a Christmas tree! For the gaudy decorations of a Christmas tree are only *tied* one, whereas fruit *grows* on a fruit-tree. In other words, Christian holiness is not an artificial human accretion (growth process – I had to look that one up!), but a natural process of fruit-bearing by the power of the Holy Spirit.” No wonder my attempts at trying to become more patient or kind or gentle seem to often fail. It’s because I’m trying to tie them on to my life, like Christmas tree decorations. One “shake of the tree” and my decoration (patience, kindness, etc.) falls off. So, let us follow Paul’s encouragement that “if we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” Only the Spirit can truly give us a fruit-bearing life.