A Life That Reflects Him: What It Really Means to Show the Fruit of the Spirit

One of the most beautiful things about walking with God is that your life becomes  a quiet reflection of His presence. Not because everything is perfect. Not because  you never struggle. But because His Spirit is working in you, even in the moments  you never imagined you’d have to face. 

The Bible calls this evidence the “fruit of the Spirit”, and it shows up in the way  you move, speak, love, endure, and keep believing when life asks more of you than  you ever thought you could give. 

And for me, some of the deepest fruit in my life grew during one of the hardest  chapters I’ve ever walked: my son’s kidney transplant … and what came after. 

Transformation Begins Within 

2 Corinthians 3:18 reminds us that “We are being transformed into His image with  ever increasing glory.” 

That kind of transformation isn’t built in peaceful seasons. Sometimes, it’s shaped  in hospitals, waiting rooms, hard prayers, and moments when you have nothing left  but surrender. When my husband and I learned that our son needed a kidney  transplant, life shifted instantly. We assured our son that we would be with him  every step of the way. 

There were tests, long nights, unknowns, fear tucked inside faith, and days when  the weight of it all felt too heavy to carry alone. But that’s where God met me. Not  with instant answers, but with strength, calm, and a steadiness I knew wasn’t  coming from me. 

The transformation that had been happening in my heart; years of God shaping me  and preparing me, became visible in that season.

Fruit Reveals What’s Growing in You 

Galatians 5:22–23 tells us about the the fruit of the Spirit which is a list of the  following traits God grows in us: 

Love. Joy. Peace. Patience. Kindness. Goodness. Faithfulness. Gentleness.  Self-control. 

During the transplant journey, those weren’t just biblical words. They became  survival.  

• Peace showed up in moments when fear could’ve swallowed me whole.
• Patience helped me through the slow pace of healing. 
• Gentleness helped me respond with tenderness when worry tried to harden  me. 
• Faithfulness held me in place when I didn’t know what the next day would  bring. 
• Love became the strength that carried me through giving him the gift of my  own kidney. 

And when we reached the one-year mark, we celebrated. We breathed again. We  thanked God for bringing us through. 

But no one expected what came next. 

Your Life Is a Window Into His Will 

Just one year after celebrating a successful transplant, we were hit with news no parent ever wants to hear:  

Cancer. 

Diffuse large b-cell lymphoma was triggered by one of the medications he took to prevent kidney rejection.

Receiving the news felt like the air left the room. Like every fear a mother could  have, came back all at once. It was like the ground under us shifted again. 

But even in that moment, God’s presence didn’t leave. The same peace that carried  me through the transplant carried me through this new battle. The same fruit God  had grown in me, kept me grounded. And the same love that moved me to be his  donor helped me stay steady when life tried to shake us again. 

And then we saw God move in a way that still brings tears to my eyes. 

After just four weeks of treatment…  

Four weeks of prayer…  

Four weeks of trusting God step by step… 

We received the words we had been believing for, “There are no visible signs of  cancer.” 

Our son was cleared, he was healthy and we were told he could go back to living  his life with no restrictions. 

Only God. Only His faithfulness. Only His power.  

Only His presence could carry a family through that kind of valley and lead them  back into the light. 

Growth Takes Time, Give Yourself Grace 

That season taught me that spiritual growth isn’t shown in how well you avoid  hardship, it’s seen in how you walk through it. There were days I was strong and  days I was scared but through it all, God was patient with me.  

Spiritual fruit grows in real soil; in the soil of fear, faith, tears, healing, hope, grief,  surrender, and mercy. It grows in seasons that stretch you, that break you open and  rebuild you from the inside out. And what I discovered was that God was there to  meet me in every step of it.  

You Were Created to Reflect His Glory

If there’s anything I learned through our family’s transplant journey, it’s this: 

You don’t reflect God only in the good moments, you reflect Him most clearly in  the ones that test you. 

I’ve also learned that the fruit He grows in you; the peace, patience, love and  faithfulness, becomes the evidence that He is with you, strengthening you,  transforming you, and carrying you through what you never imagined you could  endure. 

A life aligned with God’s will is a life that truly reflects Him.  

And the fruit of your journey, (especially the painful parts) becomes the testimony  that He is truly faithful. 

And you know what? This is what it means to be transformed. This is what it  means to show the fruit of the Spirit and this is what it means for your life to  mirror His glory.