“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine,
neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches.
Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
John 15:4-5
Jesus Christ beckons us to abide in Him. To draw near to Him, listen to Him, dwell with Him. This is not a call to set aside a few moments a week—even a few moments a day—to spend with Him. It is a call to abide in Him throughout your days.
Setting aside time to just focus on His Word, on prayer, on strengthening your relationship, is key—I’m not minimizing that fact. I just believe it’s important to remember that Christ isn’t part of our life, among all these other activities and relationships and tasks. Jesus is our life. He is at the core of who we are, and our surrendering to and abiding in Him determines our focus, our actions, and the motivations of our heart.
It is in abiding in Him that we live lives of purpose. We cannot be truly effective on our own. Not where it truly matters—mending the broken, strengthening the weak, uplifting the weary, bringing light to the darkness. These purposes are accomplished only in the power and grace of God. And so we abide in Him, becoming vessels emptied of ourselves and filled with the light and life and power of Christ.
Abiding in our Savior, we recognize His voice as He leads us to the plans He has for us. Plans that will far exceed our expectations. Plans that will challenge us as we realize we cannot accomplish them on our own. Because these plans come directly from the heart of our Almighty Father who is able to do far more abundantly than all we can ask or imagine. So we are called to follow, to obey, to pour ourselves out in circumstances that will bring our God great glory.
This command to abide in Christ is a beautiful one. It is a command in which we can rest, knowing that as He strengthens us to reach out to others in their need, He also meets us where we are—in our own brokenness, weakness, weariness, and darkness—to heal and restore us to wholeness in Him. It is a command that will result in our fullest joy and His highest praise as we see our God fulfill His every purpose in magnificent splendor.
In Pleasant Places 