Abide in Christ-A Reminder from John 15

By Lauren Makenzie

'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. 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. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. '

-John 15:1-5

As these last few months into 2025 have brought change in plans and mindsets towards growth in our lives, something the Lord has been pressing on me to talk about is recentering our thoughts on the most important thing- abiding in Jesus. To give a simple reminder that Jesus is waiting for you today.

To abide is to remain. To reside. To continue, to stay, to never part from something or someone. To accept the connection of something.

Abiding in Jesus is the first and foremost thing we should do for ourselves daily. It is our source of life, even more important than food and water.

In Psalm 103:1, David tells his own soul to bless the Lord. He knows that he loves the Lord but at the time his flesh didn't want to spend time with the Lord. A lot of times I have to get past the initial point of not wanting to open my bible, not wanting to pause and be still and rest, and yet I've never regretted spending time with God after I did.

This is where we grow in love, joy, and peace. Jesus gives us the patience, kindness and goodness. Gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control are forged only with Him (Galatians 5:22-23).

It's an important reminder to not only abide in the knowledge and truth of the gospel but to abide in the love of Jesus. And not just because we force ourselves, but out of desire for relationship with Him.

I just find it so beautiful that the one and only Creator and Lord of everything in the universe so desires a relationship with me and you. He created us out of a love we cannot even comprehend (John 3:16; Psalm 139:14) and desires for us to abide with Him.

He didn’t just create you to run around on a distant world away from his sight and let you go about your life alone. No, he wants your heart every second of every day.

Let this be your reminder today, wherever you’re reading this, that you are loved and you can come back to Jesus. That you are desired by him as he wants you to stay by his side forever, growing closer to him every day in perfect relationship, not because of what you can do, but because of who He will always be.

The purpose it gives to your life and the joy it sets in your heart, the only fulfillment we should actually be chasing. This world likes for us to chase everything but Jesus... but let's not forget about our walks with him this week.

When you go about your day, what are your thoughts on your faith? How much is Jesus included in your activities, your conversations, your downtime?

As Christians we've been taught over and over to go to God first thing in the morning, pray and read our bibles, and then go about our day. But I want to challenge you to utilize whatever you can to remind you about Jesus throughout your day. Whether that's a piece of jewelry, a few sticky notes across the house, a playlist, or a hoodie- finding that little thing that you can carry throughout the day to remember to abide in Jesus will help you in growing closer to Him and reflecting Him. Jesus gives us the example to abide in Him as He abides in His Father.

"If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love."

-John 15:10

The distractions of the world and the enemy like to make us feel like spending time with Jesus will be boring and forced, but that's far from the truth. Your connection to Jesus will never have to be mandatory, even though it is the most crucial thing needed.

When we get to heaven, we will forget the pull of distraction that tugged at us on earth. We won't have any distractions, we will just have Jesus in heaven. When I think about that, I remember that He is most important in my life, and how I love him so.

I pray that you find a moment every day to sit still with Him and grow in love with the author and savior of your heart.

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