In my household, it’s rare for bananas to get overripe. The brown banana you see above had to be set aside for the purpose of this picture. My husband’s favourite FOOD (not just fruit) is bananas. On the rare occurrences that a bunch of bananas become overripened, they either go into a blender, into banana bread or muffins, or find themselves in a freezer bag for future smoothies. What happens in your household?

Last month we read about all the wonderful fruits in Galatians 5:22-25, but if we back up just a few verses, we can read:

“The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21

Paul makes a stark comparison between good and bad fruits. I’m not here to judge you about the rotten fruit in your life; I have my own rotten fruit. Today I want to talk about how they can become something beautiful. If we look at the acts of the flesh listed in Galatians one by one and then the fruits of the Spirit one by one, we might be able to pair up opposites. For example, sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery could be contrasted by self-control. A life of faith and commitment is a journey of reducing the bad fruits and increasing the good.

Here’s a possible step-by-step approach to making “banana bread” out of “rotten bananas”:

Step 1. Identify the rotten fruit

You may see that list above and feel immediately convicted upon reading one of the acts of the flesh or you may have to dig a little deeper. This process can bring feelings of shame and guilt and as humans we sometimes put barriers up to these feelings. It can be really hard to be honest with ourselves. If we take the blinders off it might be uncomfortable, but we don’t need to stay in that shame.

Step 2. Confess the rotten fruit

Talk to God about what the first step revealed to you. Let Him know that you’ve identified a source of rottenness in your life. Apologize and allow Him to release you from the weight of it. Don’t live in the shame. That’s not where He wants you to be; it’s hard to grow from there.

Step 3. What are the triggers?

It may not obvious where the rotten fruit stems from. Sometimes we allow things into our lives that lead us to envy, idolatry, impurity, etc. Sometimes we are dragged there by people or circumstances. In whatever ways possible, we need to close temptation’s door.

“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Matthew 26:41

Step 4. How do we protect ourselves?

There could be lifestyle changes that create a cushion between you and the bad fruit. It could be a choice of what we are consuming in media. It might start with a rigid routine or rule for yourself. We can’t just expect the fruit to stop rotting without doing anything. If we take something out of our lives, there becomes a void to fill. Let’s focus on filling it with good fruit.

Step 5. Ask for help.

Is there someone in your life that can help you stay accountable? At the very minimum, ask God for help. We aren’t made to this life alone.

Step 6. Experience the fruits of your labour

There are a lot of lessons that can be learned through the trials and temptations, and these lessons can become something of beauty as we use them to help others or for our own personal and spiritual growth.

Brown bananas aren’t necessarily rotten, of course, but for the purpose of this analogy…Let’s turn our rotten bananas into a fresh loaf of banana bread together!