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Articles by Amy Greene

Please Wait…

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“Remain in me, as I also remain in you.”

John 15:4, NIV

please_waitIf you don’t mind, I’d like to delve a little deeper into this part. Bear with me, because I think there’s something else here worth noting.

The original Greek word for remain is meno.  It’s interesting that it translates both to stay and to wait.  Staying is difficult enough for most of us. We get bored. We get frustrated. We want something new, something different. We’re ready to “move on.”

But waiting? That’s next to impossible. Our culture today emphasizes nothing if not immediate gratification. Technology can be amazing—you can send mail, pay bills, read your Bible, and even order pizza all on the same device with which you make phone calls! With the Internet on your smart phone, all the information in the world is at your fingertips. Remember the days of taking pictures, sending your film off to be developed, and waiting for the envelope of snapshots to come in? What about calling someone, and they weren’t home and didn’t have an answering machine, so you just had to call back? Anyone remember having to reheat leftovers in the oven or on the stovetop? Some of you probably do. A lot of you probably don’t.

The one downside to all this instant gratification is that our lives are so busy, so rushed, that we can’t recall (or have never known) how to sit back and chill.  We’ve lost the patience to simply wait. If Jesus doesn’t answer our prayers immediately, we feel rejected. But He reminds us that not only are we to remain in Him – to stay with Him – but we are to wait for Him. One of the fruits of the Spirit is forebearance. Some translations use patience instead. In other words, the ability to wait.

Jesus isn’t a smart phone app that’s going to respond the moment you tap it with your fingertip. Also, he’s not dependent on a good Internet connection or charged battery. If you remain in Him, trust Him, stay with Him and wait for Him, He will be the source you need. Guaranteed.

Remaining in Him,

Amy

Stay With Me.

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“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.”

John 15:4, NIV

start-with-jesus-stay-with-jesus-end-with-jesus-quote-1One of the definitions of “remain” in Merriam-Webster’s dictionary is “to stay in the same place with the same person or group.” Pretty simple. Or so it would seem.

But any of you who have or have had small children know this is not always so easy. How often have you been in a public place and told your children, “Stay with me,” and yet, you turn around, and they’ve wandered a few feet away, or even to another aisle where you can no longer see them? They have no concept of how dangerous it is to stray from you and the safety of your watchful eye.

We’re a lot like that, you know. We think we can “just go look at this” or “just step over here for a minute,” without thinking how dangerous it is to step away from Jesus. And just like a child who has wandered away from Mom and suddenly realizes he can no longer see her, we look up and realize just how far we’ve wandered from Him. He’s still there, just like the mom on the next aisle. We just can’t see Him at that moment. The difference is, He can still see us, and will patiently wait until we come back.

The Bible says “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (NIV)  are the “fruit of the Spirit.” If we, as branches, are to produce this fruit, we must remain in Him. That means we must stay in the same place with the same person – Jesus! With Him is not only the safest place to be, it’s the only place to be if you wish to bear fruit in your life.

He said so Himself.

“Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” 

Remaining in Him,

Amy

Consider the Source

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 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

John 15:5, NIV

roots-of-powerWe all know what happens to branches that are cut from the plant: they wither and die. On the surface, this seems kind of obvious, but stick with me here.

The roots of plants draw water from the soil, and combined with the process of photosynthesis in the leaves, create “food” for the plant to survive. The leaves cannot perform photosynthesis on their own, away from the plant, because the water drawn from the soil by the roots is necessary for the process. Branches that are cut cannot produce fruit. They will die because they no longer receive what they need from the plant.

Jesus used this simple illustration in verse five to remind us what our “source” should be. “If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit. Apart from me, you can do nothing.” As branches, we are dependent upon the “living water” that comes from the “vine” – Jesus – for our branches to bear fruit. Apart from Him, our “branches” cannot produce any fruit. We must remain in Him, or we can do nothing.

How do you remain in Jesus? Spend time with Him. Spend time reading His Word. Talk to Him. Get to know Him. Spend time with others who know and love Him. He doesn’t care if you have thirty minutes a day for deep Bible study or if you talk to Him throughout your day, thanking Him for even silly things like a good parking spot at Walmart. (Both are great, by the way.) He just wants you to remain in Him! Be aware of His presence in your everyday life. Let Him know you know your “source!”

Sister, if you find yourself in a “fruitless” situation, it might be time to check your source.

Remaining in Him,

Amy