Christian discipleship

Are There Fruit Flies in Your Spiritual Fruit?

~ Observant Servant

There was a bowl of fruit sitting on the counter the other morning. Nothing special about it at first glance. Just apples, a peach, a few berries. But when I walked past it later in the day, I noticed the small, familiar swirl of fruit flies hovering above it.

Not many. Just enough to tell me something had begun to turn.

Fruit flies are strange little creatures. They do not show up when fruit is healthy and whole. They are drawn to what has started to decay, even if the change is barely visible from the outside.

That small moment stayed with me longer than I expected. It made me stop and quietly ask the Lord a question I don’t ask often enough.

Are there fruit flies in my spiritual fruit?

Jesus said, “Ye shall know them by their fruits.” — Matthew 7:16

Not by our words. Not by our intentions. Not by how busy we are doing good things. By our fruit.

And Paul describes that fruit so clearly in Galatians:
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” — Galatians 5:22–23

When the Spirit of God is cultivating a life, those qualities begin to grow quietly and steadily. Love that is patient. Peace that is not shaken by every storm. Gentleness toward people who do not always deserve it. Self-control when emotions would rather take over.

But if I am honest, there have been seasons when the fruit in my own life looked good from a distance while something small inside had already started to turn.

Sometimes tainted spiritual fruit does not look dramatic.

It can look like serving faithfully while quietly carrying resentment toward someone.

It can look like speaking truth, but without tenderness.

It can look like continuing in ministry while patience with people begins to thin.

Sometimes it shows up when we care more about being right than we do about someone being restored. Sometimes it appears when joy slowly drains out of our obedience and what remains is duty.

And sometimes the fruit flies gather around something even more subtle. A small place of pride. A hidden offense we never released. A weariness that hardened into cynicism.

These things do not always appear overnight. They arrive quietly, like those tiny flies circling unnoticed until the heart pauses long enough to see them.

But the Lord is a gentle gardener. He does not reveal these things to condemn us. He reveals them because He loves healthy fruit.

Jesus said, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” — John 15:5

The answer is not striving harder to manufacture better fruit. It is returning to the Vine. Staying close enough to Jesus that His life flows through ours again.

When we do, the Spirit begins quietly restoring what has begun to spoil. Love softens the places that hardened. Peace returns where anxiety tried to settle. Patience grows again where frustration had taken root.

David prayed something I find myself praying more often lately:

“Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” — Psalm 139:23–24

It is a humble prayer. A brave one too.

Because it asks the Lord to show us what we might rather ignore. But the beautiful thing about walking with God is that He never exposes decay without offering restoration. He is always ready to prune, cleanse, and renew.

And sometimes the most honest step forward is simply pausing long enough to ask:

Lord, is there anything in my fruit that needs Your touch again?

Lord,

Search my heart and examine the fruit of my life. If there are places where love has grown cold, where pride has quietly taken root, or where bitterness has begun to spoil what You planted, please show me gently. I do not want to carry fruit that misrepresents Your Spirit.

Cleanse what needs cleansing. Prune what needs pruning. Restore the tenderness of heart that reflects You.

Help me remain close to the Vine so that the fruit of my life carries Your love, Your peace, and Your humility. Let my life nourish others rather than repel them.

Thank You for being a patient gardener who never gives up on the branches that belong to You.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

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The Everyday Nature of Worship

~ Observant Servant

Worship is often reduced to a moment in a church service. The music begins, the lyrics appear on a screen, hands lift, voices rise, and for many people that becomes their definition of worship. But when I read Scripture slowly and honestly, it becomes clear that worship in the Bible is far bigger than a song.

Singing can certainly be an expression of worship. The Psalms are filled with songs that lift praise to God. Psalm 95:1 says, “O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.” There is something beautiful about voices joining together in gratitude and reverence. But Scripture never presents singing as the whole of worship. It is only one small part of a much deeper posture of the heart.

Worship, in the biblical sense, is about alignment.

Jesus said something striking when He spoke to the woman at the well. In John 4:23–24 He said, “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” That statement shifts worship away from location, ritual, or performance. Worship becomes something internal before it is ever external. It is the heart recognizing God for who He truly is and responding with sincerity, humility, and obedience.

This means worship can happen in quiet places where no music is playing at all.

When someone chooses forgiveness instead of bitterness, that can be worship. When a person humbles themselves and repents before God, that can be worship. When someone obeys the Lord even when it costs them something, that is deeply worshipful. Romans 12:1 captures this beautifully: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” In other words, a life surrendered to God becomes an offering laid on the altar.

That kind of worship cannot be confined to a church building or a playlist.

I’ve come to realize that worship often looks very ordinary from the outside. It looks like quiet faithfulness. It looks like choosing truth when deception would be easier. It looks like honoring God in the unseen places where nobody applauds. The psalmist writes in Psalm 51:17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” God is not looking for perfect voices. He is looking for surrendered hearts.

The more I walk with the Lord, the more I see that worship is woven into the small decisions of everyday life. It shows up in gratitude when circumstances are hard. It appears in trust when outcomes are uncertain. It grows in quiet moments of prayer when no one else is around.

Songs can lead us into worship, but they are not the destination.

True worship begins when the heart bows before God and says, sincerely and without reservation, “You are worthy.” And when that posture takes root, it doesn’t end when the music stops. It continues into the way we speak, the way we forgive, the way we serve, and the way we live.

A life fully yielded to Christ becomes the song.

Father,

Teach me what true worship really is. Help me not to limit worship to a moment of music, but to live a life that honors You in every decision, every word, and every hidden place of my heart. Create in me a humble and surrendered spirit. When my heart drifts, draw me back into alignment with Your truth. Let my obedience, my repentance, my gratitude, and my trust become an offering that is pleasing to You. May my life reflect Your goodness in the quiet places where no one else sees. And may everything I do point back to the One who is worthy of all honor, glory, and praise.

In Jesus’ name, amen.