The complete guide to others-oriented fruit of the Spirit

Source: 1Happysnapper

The Others-oriented fruit of the Spirit series is the longest series I’ve published here so far. It’s taken us from love to self-control, meeting all the funness like longsuffering along the way. :)

In general, the series was about shifting from receiving the
Spirit only for ourselves to promoting the Spirit and its fruit in others. It’s one of those needs we all have but don’t always realize. And certainly, at least in my case, rarely share.

I appreciate everyone who’s followed along. I hope you’ve enjoyed it and are able to spread the Spirit to others.

To make it easier, here are the links to the entire series all in one place.

The complete, Others-oriented fruit of the Spirit series

Others-oriented fruit of the Spirit

Synopsis: The introduction tells what the others-oriented version of the fruit of the Spirit is about. It’s all about helping others develop the fruit of the Spirit in their lives instead of just in yours. (But I just said that here, didn’t I?)

How to start someone’s love

Synopsis: How do you start someone’s love? You love them… in a practical, obvious way. It’s important here to focus on showing love that doesn’t require response.

How to boost someone’s joy

Synopsis: Joy comes from taking our focus off the individual difficulties that are in front of us and focusing instead on the overall abundance God’s given us. When you and I help others realize their purpose and meaningfulness through Christ’s sacrifice, their natural response is joy.

How to guard someone’s peace

Synopsis: Peace is calm through turmoil, not absence of turmoil. Guarding peace is preventative – it prevents problems before they occur. You can guard others’ peace by reminding of the protection God’s already given.

How to increase someone’s longsuffering (patience)

Synopsis: Patience is what we want when longsuffering is what we feel. As with peace, longsuffering means enduring through the trials. So we can help others by enduring alongside them, not necessarily trying to take away the difficulties.

How to magnify someone’s kindness

Synopsis: Kindness is subtle, so it’s often missed. Don’t miss it. You and I can magnify it by looking for the kindness in others and showing thankfulness for it.

How to expose someone’s goodness

Synopsis: Goodness is tied to what God’s done, not what any specific person’s done. Exposing someone’s goodness is about bringing them back to what Christ did on the cross so we can all be amazing.

How to appreciate someone’s faithfulness

Synopsis: Leaders the world over want faithfulness in their followers, but often, at least for myself, I don’t truly appreciate those who are faithful. You and I can do this by valuing the faithfulness that’s already present and adding more through encouragement.

How to cultivate someone’s gentleness

Synopsis: Sometimes people aren’t gentle because they’ve never had an opportunity to practice it. They don’t know how to be gentle. I suggest letting them (and helping them) practice on you.

How to train someone’s self-control

Synopsis: I think training for self-control is more effective when it’s focused on changing influences rather than directly attacking habits. So to help others with self-control, focus on surrounding friends with influences that promote self-control instead of selfishness.

Finale

If there’s one thing I’d like to leave you with from this series, it’s this:

You can spread the fruit of the Spirit by…

  • Pointing to Christ and what He’s done for us and…
  • Teaching others to do the same.

The Holy Spirit is all about pointing to Jesus. So when we encourage others to do the same, the Holy Spirit works through them.

When it comes down to it, that’s what this (and everything else I share here) is all about.

Serving Suggestions:

(1) If you’d like to come back to this series in the future or share it with others, you can bookmark or point to this post.

(2) In the comments, which of these did you find most useful?

(3) Now go spread some fruit. :)