The Fruit of the Spirit: Daily reflections from Ascension to Pentecost

In the ten days between Jesus’ Ascension and the Day of Pentecost, his disciples were told to wait “to be clothed with power from on high”. (Luke 24.49.)

Through the daily reflections we will share between Ascension Day (May 10) and Pentecost (May 20)  I hope that we will be helped to wait expectantly, trusting that God is at work in us. His presence is certain. “Lo, I am with you to the end of the age” said Jesus to his disciples before he left them (Matthew 28.20)  But like the seeds that we sow in the ground at this time of year, often the life of God that is growing in us is unseen, underground. We need to wait and to watch for its appearing.

St Paul said: The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control. Galatians 5.22-23 (Different translations of the Bible often choose slightly different English words for the Greek originals, so the list in your Bible may not be quite the same!) We will use his words as a starting point for our reflections. This is part of Seal's participation in "Thy Kingdom Come"

A prayer to use in Ascensiontide:

Gracious God, open our eyes to see you, our ears to hear you, and our hearts to love you.

May your Spirit take root in our lives so that your good fruit may grow abundantly in us to nourish and delight us and those to whom you call us. Amen

Using these reflections with children

There will be nothing in these reflections which is not suitable for children to read or think about, so if you have children you might like to talk about them together, though you may need to unpack them a bit.

What do these words mean to them?

• Can they think of any time when they showed these fruits in their lives?
• Can they think of anyone who they know who is like this?

 You could also do some “fruity” crafts or make fruit salad or fruit kebabs as you talk!