阅读经文 

当加拿大的广袤草原仍然被严寒的冬天紧紧抓住时，我们一家飞到南加州度假。抵达之后不久，我们在一个公园里意外地看到一棵葡萄柚树。我们时常都会在杂货店购买葡萄柚来吃的，然而，能够直接从树上摘下一个葡萄柚并且立刻在树下剥开吃掉，这是一个令人无法抗拒的诱惑！

可是，所有低垂的果子都已被摘光了。于是，我们的一个女儿便坐在我的肩膀上，手里拿着一根可以够到高处的枝条，把一棵成熟多汁的果子从树上打下来。我们以前从未尝过如此美味的葡萄柚！

多年之后，我的这个已经成年的女儿，再一次坐在我的肩膀上，摘下夏威夷路旁树上的香蕉。我们家自己的后花园有一棵苹果树和一棵梨树，但香蕉却是不同的。在我们的眼中，它—可是有异国情调的果子啊！

在这个月，我们的每日箴言将会专注果子这个主题—不是生长在树上的果子，而是圣灵在我们生命里面所结的果子。尽管在大多数人的生命中，都有少量的仁爱、喜乐、和平、忍耐（耐性）、恩慈、良善、信实、温柔、和节制，然而，当我们按照圣灵的指引，这些特质便会发展成日新月异，生机勃勃的面貌了。

Winter had not yet lost its icy grip on the Canadian prairies when our family flew to southern California for a vacation. Soon after arriving, we stumbled upon a grapefruit tree in a park. We often bought grapefruit at the grocery store, but the thought of picking a grapefruit straight from a tree and eating it right there was a temptation we could not resist!

But all of the low-hanging fruit had already been picked. So one of our daughters, sitting on my shoulders, took a long stick and was able to reach high enough to knock down a juicy, ripe fruit from the tree. Never had a grapefruit tasted so good to us!

Years later that same daughter, now an adult, sat on my shoulders again to reach bananas on a roadside tree in Hawaii. We had an apple tree and a pear tree in our own backyard, but this fruit was different. From our perspective it was . . . well, exotic!

This month our daily devotions will focus on fruit—not fruit that grows on trees but fruit that is produced in us by the Holy Spirit. While traces of love, joy, peace, forbearance (patience), kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control are present in most everyone's lives, these traits take on a new and vibrant dimension when we walk in step with the Spirit.