Colossians 3:12 So, as God’s own chosen people, who are holy [set apart, sanctified for His purpose] and well-beloved [by God Himself], put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience [which has the power to endure whatever injustice or unpleasantness comes, with good temper] .
We need to daily put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience—prayerfully asking God to continue growing these qualities in us. When faced with situations where we need to exercise any one of these qualities, we need the Holy Spirit to remind us to pause and choose to respond in a way that honors Him—and lifts up the name of Jesus.
When feelings of frustration, anger or negativity start to well up, let this be a trigger to refuse to give in to the flesh by refocusing on Jesus and releasing these feelings to Him. And in so doing, we put to death the responses of the flesh—nullifying its effect while bringing honor and glory to God.
These situations that we find ourselves in, become the ‘groundwork’ God establishes in which He can grow these qualities in us. Without them, we don’t have the environment for these qualities to be outworked. We need to always remember this! It’s like anything in life, in order to learn and grow, we need to be exposed to situations or seasons where we can be stretched. It could be major life seasons or a minor daily irritation, whatever it is, we need to be aware of ‘how’ we deal with it.
We are all on this journey with God, together. No one is exempt from the struggles, storms, interruptions, annoyances and obstacles in life—it’s how we respond to it that is the key. Even in the midst of turmoil, we can still offer God a sacrifice of praise. If you can’t think of anything to praise God for, then you can just praise Him for who He is! That’s more than enough to fill your heart and mouth with praise. By praising the Lord, you are lifted up because God enthrones the praises of His people.
So, today, choose to listen to the Holy Spirit’s promptings when He reminds you, in those moments, how to react. This is not an impossible task, but it does take a lot of ‘groundwork’—but in time, as we choose to put this in practice, it will become our new normal. We will begin to respond less ‘in the flesh’ and more ‘in the Spirit’ out of a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. So, hang in there! We’re all on the same road, learning and growing together.
