1407) For those of you who don’t live in the Carolinas or Georgia, you may miss out on the best peaches on God’s green earth. Just thinking about them makes my mouth water. I remember getting baskets of peaches at the farmer’s market and most of them were almost the size of softballs. You take one bite of them and you’ve got juice all over your face and shirt. There’s nothing better than a ripe, healthy freestone peach that falls right off the pit.

It’s easy to tell if a fruit tree is healthy; just look at and taste the fruit. The same is true with Christians. You can tell if your spiritual life is healthy and thriving by looking at the fruit. Do you love others? Is there joy in your life? Do you radiate peace, patience, kindness and goodness? Are you faithful to what you say you believe? Do you display gentleness and self-control? These fruits of the spirit are signs that someone’s Christian walk is healthy.

Next time you see a freestone peach from the South, remember Galatians 5:22-23.