The other day, I was listening to a podcast where the speaker prayed that we would see supernatural acts. She asked God to make us more in tune with the supernatural and empower us with His Spirit. While she was praying, my mind immediately went to signs and wonders. I imagined people being healed and miracles happening left and right.

Then I asked myself why I limited “the supernatural” to miracles.

While signs and wonders are amazing and I pray God continues to move this way in the world, I think we might have only a partial view of the supernatural. In fact, I think the miraculous is closer than we might think.

The Fruit of the Spirit

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” Galatians 5:22-26 (ESV)

I would say that each of these characteristics is supernatural. It’s impossible to bear the fruit of the Spirit in our own strength—it’s a miraculous act of the Lord. Without Him, there’s no way that we can love the unloveable and have joy during turmoil. True peace, patience, and kindness are impossible in our own strength. Our goodness and faithfulness fall way short without His presence. Have you ever tried to be gentle or self-controlled in your own strength? In my experience, it’s not pretty.

Though I don’t want to admit it, I think social media has warped our brains a little bit, tricking us into believing the lie that if we can’t post about it, then it’s not good. After all, if an event isn’t on social media, did it even happen? This means good (and supernatural) deeds like being patient with a coworker or loving our neighbor don’t seem as meaningful as a mysterious sign or wonder. Because we can’t post it on social media, we might underestimate the impact good fruit has on the world around us.

Supernatural Daily Acts

The fruit of the Spirit in our lives is just as important and life-changing for those around us as a miraculous moment of healing. I believe our intentional, daily choices to submit and surrender are supernatural acts that please God and touch the hearts of others.

As we remain in Him, seek Him, and focus our attention on Him, the natural byproduct is bearing good fruit—the fruit of the Spirit. This is the supernatural result of His gracious, sanctifying work in our lives that we can’t manufacture on our own. I wonder what our communities, workplaces, and homes might look like if we focused on the Spirit’s work within us instead of seeing the supernatural only as external miracles.

When we are in Christ, we are walking miracles—I think that’s pretty incredible! Let’s allow the Holy Spirit to perform His supernatural work of developing good fruit in our lives as we continue to lean on Him. I pray our eyes are opened today to the supernatural occurring inside, through, and around us today!