Abounding!

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. John 15:4

Fruits are known to be nutritious and provide essential vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants. They also have a range of beneficial compounds. Eating a variety of fruits is recommended for overall health. One day a friend invited me to go and pick some pears from her pear tree that had gone crazy by producing so many pears than they could handle.  There were pears everywhere in abundance!

To bear good fruit as Christians the Bible teaches us to remain in Jesus? He allows us to be pruned so that we can be more fruitful just like that pear tree. We abide in God by cultivating a life closely connected to Him. Our every need for life, spiritual growth, and furtherance of the gospel is ours as we stay committed to a consistent walk with Christ just as the branch gets its nutrients from the vine.

This will happen when we are firmly attached to Christ. Seeking Him with open and humble hearts gives access to His active presence in our daily lives. We know we have a personal relationship with Jesus when we seek intimacy through prayer with open hearts and when we allow His teachings to guide our lives daily.  As we do this, we will have the access to connect and speak with him and be in His presence at anytime.

Consequently, we become productive, grow fruit from a godly life and God gives us the ability to make beautiful things, and produce more fruit just like the pear tree or other fruit trees. As we wait when connected, we have the privilege to remain in Him. In this incredible relationship our joy will overflow as the Father is glorified in our lives.

We get the privilege of being God’s friends because we have so much in common just like Abraham is mentioned in John 15:15 …Now you are my friends since I have told you everything the Father told me..”

Scripture reminds us that we are chosen and appointed to produce lasting fruit. The word “remain is repeated in John 15 ten times. Which makes me think that it is “a testimony of God’s creative power”!  We are natural, yet we have a supernatural God who invites us to remain in Him and share with him so much as we remain connected and the Holy Spirit in us will produce the fruit of the Spirit in our daily lives. 

Pray your response to the Lord personally, meaningfully and genuinely!

Reflect:

What’s one thing you can do every day in the remaining days of this year to remind you to depend on God?