It's Story Time

Must Be Connected

John 15:5  I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

The other day I felt manly. There are certain times, certain moments, when it feels good to be a MAN.  If there is one place that helps achieve those moments, it is Home Depot.  I walk into that store and I just feel tougher.  I start looking down aisles and trying to imagine myself fixing something.  This particular trip to Home Depot was especially sweet because I was buying a new power tool (insert manly grunt here).  I go into the part of the store that has what I am looking for.  I start with the big expensive professional stuff and then work my way back into reality.  I find what will suit my needs, purchase it and go home.  I open the box and begin to put the drill together when I notice this giant tag hanging from the battery pack, it reads:

WARNING

“This tool will not work if the battery is not plugged in.  A charged battery must be connected properly to use this tool.”

Really?  That needs to be stated.  I just bought a cordless battery operated drill.  How stupid are people?  Then it hit me, sometimes people forget where the real power comes from.

Jesus reminds his disciples in John 15 that if they want to be fruitful in ministry they need to be connected to Him…always.  He is reminding them that He is the true vine and they are the branches.  If the branches try to make it on their own without the life giving power of the vine, they die.  It is impossible for branches to produce fruit, let alone live at all, if they are not connected to the vine.  He is getting them ready for their task to come and that was to go out into the world and change it forever with the good news of Jesus Christ.  The fruit they were called to produce is the same fruit we are called to produce today.  The fruit is seeing lives changed through the power and message of Jesus Christ.  Thus we, as branches, must be connected to Him in order to see that life change in our own life and in the lives of others.  Life change only happens when we are connected to Christ in every aspect of our life.  Every thought, every desire, every word, every action, every motive and every breath must be connected to Christ.  Maybe as followers of Christ we should come with this tag attached to us:

WARNING

“If you want your life to matter you must be plugged into Christ.  His power, His Spirit must be connected properly to you in order to be used for worldchange.”

Sometimes tags are obvious, but they always serve as a good reminder.

God, help me stay connected to you.  Continue to draw me closer to you each and every day.  Through your power and your strength help me to have fruit that will last for your Kingdom.  Make me a branch that produces change in the lives of others.

2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

It is funny to see how as we get older we try to have more independence. For example our oldest son is 3 years old and with the birth of his younger brother last week our oldest has become “completely independent.” Here is what he told me he could do on his own. Change his brothers diapers, give him a bath, drive to the store to get more diapers, teach his brother how to hit a baseball, make his own mac and cheese, get the mail, and mow the lawn and the list goes on and on. Every time something needs to be done he assures us he can do it all by himself. Wouldn’t it be nice? Now don’t get me wrong there are lots of things he does on his own. However, our newborn needs us for everything. The more I think of it, our newborn is helpless without us. As a new parent I absolutely love it. I love that he needs me. I love to care for him. I love to clean him up. I love to hold him, clothe him, and provide for him. I love to love him. I cherish these days.

As I look at the Church I see a disheartening trend emerging from the people. As we get older in our relationship with God we think we need Him less. We look at our lives that might not be spiraling out of control and we think to ourselves, “wow, I am doing a great job with my life.” We look around us and we assume that we are the authors of our own success. As we mature we begin to form a list of all the things we can do on our own. We think we can overcome that temptation alone. We assume we have the strength to persevere. We think that we need God less.

I am reminded of this in 2 Peter chapter 1 where it says that everything we need for life comes from the knowledge of God made possible though the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ. Every single thing we need to have life, to pursue Godly living comes from Him. We can do nothing on our own. When we think we can do things on our own strength we slowly begin to replace God with us. We begin to think we are stronger than we really are. We begin to think we are more loving than we really are. We begin to think we are more holy than we really are. There is only one God who orchestrated the redemption of man through His Son Jesus Christ. There is only one God who created the universe and put the stars in their place. There is only one God who can truly provide everything we need to live a life set apart for Him. And He loves every minute of it. God desires to be depended on. He does not want us to go through this life thinking we can do it all on our own. That is why he freely gives everything we need.

So next time you begin to think that you are bigger than you really are. Remember that when it comes to God we are but newborns, who depend on Him for EVERYTHING!

Lord, empty us of ourselves. Remove from us the thought they we can do anything on our own strength. Remind us that everything we need for life has come from you. Help us be filled with more of you and less of us