Day 2 | Abide

BE STILL

Spend 2 minutes in stillness and silence with God.

SCRIPTURE

“I am the vine; you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. John 15:5 (NKJV)

DEVOTION

One of the best times of the year (in my humble opinion) is when it's not too hot, certainly not cold, and the sun is shining bright. The sun rays warm our bodies, we can relax outside without melting, and we may even find ourselves saying, "This weather is so perfect." It is pure bliss!

When we think of abiding in God, it is a similar experience. Every moment feels like that perfect, blissful day. He fills our souls, He gives us rest, and He provides a gentle, soothing comfort that words cannot do justice to describe. But what exactly does abiding in God actually mean?

Abiding in God means that we are living, remaining, or continually dwelling in His presence. It means that after we have eagerly sought His face, our heart posture stays towards Him. It means that every day we make an intentional effort to acknowledge our God (who is always there), and drink from the well that never runs dry (John 14:13- 14). Lastly, it means being filled to the brim with comfort, joy, peace, love, and so much more because we are connected to the true vine.

The one thing about abiding is that it requires something our society typically does not like to do - slow down. It may sound contradictory to us; we seek God with eagerness and urgency just to immediately slow down. However, we seek God with so much urgency because we are getting back in right standing with Him. The urgency is needed because when we are apart from Him our lives are frankly not quite the same. Once we are back in His presence, we can slow down because when we are with Him, we have everything that we need. He knows everything. He sees everything. He hears everything. Abiding gives us rest because we know that He can handle all that has, is, and will come up in our lives.

As a result, we can trust that while connected to God we will not only bear fruit but that it will be GOOD fruit that is pleasing to Him. We will truly become the salt of the Earth that He has called us to be. Abiding is not something we strive to do occasionally, but it is a lifestyle that we aim to live every day of our lives.

WRITE IT OUT

What does your life schedule look like these days? Are you able to spend time abiding in God? If not, how can you make room for Him in your life?

Does the fruit produced in your life look like God and His kingdom? If not, what do you think is keeping you from living fruitfully?

PRAY IT OUT

Lord, You are mighty and powerful. You know all things and everything on the earth is Yours. You created all and there is absolutely nothing that can hide from You. You have numbered the very hairs on my head. You provide food for the sparrows and clothe the fields with lilies. You orchestrate all things. I thank You that I can live my life abiding in Your presence and as a result, abiding in freedom. For where Your Spirit is, there is freedom. There is rest. There are green pastures and still waters, and I choose to remain in Your presence today and every day.

Lord, I admit there were times that I allowed life to get the best of me, and I strayed from dwelling with You. As a result, I bore fruit that did not look like You - the fruit of jealousy, sexual immorality, doubt, anger, fear, and so much more. I turn back to abiding in You, remembering that Your yoke is easy, and burden is light. If You are for me, who can be against me? I declare that surely Your goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life. Thank You for the ability to abide in You! In Jesus' Name, Amen