The difficulty we have in keeping on the straight and narrow and consistently displaying the fruit of the Spirit, and being distressed about this is evidence of the Holy Spirit’s presence in our hearts and lives. If we did not have the Holy Spirit. We wouldn’t care. But we do care. And we are distressed when we discover we’ve forfeited the fruit of the Spirit in any situation. Thanks be to God that Jesus welcomes us back. And we can pray with David, “take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation,” whenever we sin. That, too, is the Spirit’s work. And it is not too difficult for God.
