Remain.

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.  She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said.  But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, ‘Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!’

 ‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed – or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.’ Luke 10:38-42 NIV

I believe that the enemy’s main objective isn’t just to make you fall directly. His goal is to get you separated from God so that you will fall on your own. We can look at stories like Peter walking on water to see this concept. All the enemy has to do is get you to focus on something other than the Savior you will fall. So often he does that by pushing us to be busy, too busy to spend time with God. It’s so easy to be like Martha in this story. Working hard for the right things. Working for the benefit of the right people. Working on things that make sense. But working so much that we get distracted from who and what should be at the center of our lives and work. 

God has helped reveal that I’m a lot like Martha. I’m a producer. One of my favorite words is “prolific.” If you know me, you know that I love personality tests and further understanding myself. The Enneagram test is a personality type system that helps put words to some of the core feelings and desires that may push people. My type is 3, the achiever. The type who is described as having their personal value attached to how much they can produce. I know what it’s like to be intimately connected to the idea of what I do so much that I get too busy to actually rest and bask in the presence of Jesus. 

To take it a step further, I know what it’s like to put so much of who I am and how I view myself into what I accomplish that even though I am doing things for God and for others, like Martha, I miss the point and neglect time with the reason and source of my productivity, Jesus. I know what it’s like to want to sing on praise team, start and run ministries like Closer or Redemption, prepare sermons and devotionals, practice for the Aeolians, help others write songs and organize other ministries, do school work to build and sharpen myself as a sword in God’s hands, read and study extra content in my free time to further grow, and pour into and care for the people around me so much that I forget to sit down and spend real time soaking and learning from Jesus for myself. These are good things. These are noble desires that God has used to do great things. But I think a lot of times we forget the order God uses to use us. 

The equation isn’t: Fruit + God = Good life, it is God = Fruit + Good life.

I think we love the idea of being used by God and working alongside Him but forget that fruit comes from Him. 

We try so hard to work for God that we forget we need to be working from Him. 

‘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 15:4-5

Focusing on the fruit (the things we produce) isn’t sustainable. We look strong on our own but when pressure comes we can’t keep up the facade in our own power. We can’t expect fruit without being nurtured by the source that is producing it. All good things come out of our connection with God. A reason so many of us are burning out and getting overwhelmed is that we decided to work for God instead of letting Him work through us. God wants to use everyone, but we aren’t strong enough to produce the things God wants to do through us on our own. His power needs to be moving through us. We try too hard to work for Jesus instead of being used by Jesus and that is the opposite of the gospel of Jesus. 

Jesus is the vine. We are the branches. Fruit, production, growth, comes from Him, not from our own doing. 

If you want to be used by God, your connection to Him needs to be your number one desire. 

The Gospel is the good news that Jesus has accomplished the work needed for us, and His work will bear fruit in us. We just need to believe and rest in what He is doing. He is the one that is producing the fruit. 

So many of us are in cycles of emptiness and lack passion because we are working for our own prolificness instead of letting the Spirit of God work through us. We are empty and tired because we are working like pitchers who have to be constantly refilled in order to pour when God calls us to be like hoses: people that provide solely based on the fact that they’re available for use and connected to the source... Being in connection with Jesus is what causes an effortless, free-flowing, uninterrupted outpour of the fruit of the Spirit working in our lives. Fruit comes from connection.

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. ‘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 15:4-5

 For the sake of our own souls, we need to stop trying to keep up the level of God’s vision with our own ability. That doesn’t make sense. We aren’t strong enough to keep it up without Him... A connection with Him must come before fruit from Him. Something I love about the idea of the vine concept in the verse is that it says “remain,” not get yourself connected. Verse 3 says, “You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.” Once we accept Jesus we are already connected. The connection comes from what He has done. We just need to accept it. He is just urging us not to run from that for our own good. Not because He needs us or is a narcissistic maniac that needs friends. But because He knows we can’t get far without Him. He knows we need him to supply our life and energy and passions and strength. He knows that life without Him is death. He knows that pain comes the farther we try to run from Him, and He is a loving parent who genuinely hurts when He sees His kids hurting. So I am pleading the same way. Stay connected. Remain. Don’t get distracted by everything else. Only one thing matters, and that’s Jesus, the Way, the truth, the life, the peace, the joy, the contentment, the hope, and the embodiment of pure love. Jesus brings everything we need. His Spirit is the thing that fills that void in your heart. There’s peace when you call His name. There’s joy when you are connected. There’s hope when you remember His promises. Stay connected. Remain. 

The Bible talks about letting your light shine so that people may see your good works and glorify your father. It is good to produce. But don’t get so wrapped up in production for God that you miss out on time with Him. Don’t work for Him so much that you miss out on sitting at His feet. Remain connected.

If you aren’t sure if you are connected, just ask. 

Tell God you want Him. He already wanted you before the beginning of time. Just accept His love and rest in what He has done. Believe He is enough. Believe He has done the work and will continue a work in you. Rest in that. There will be ups and downs. Life is still hard, but you have peace knowing that Jesus has already overcome everything you come across. Ask Him to help you trust Him today. Ask Him to help you rest in Him. 

 Thank you for reading and supporting this ministry. I pray you are blessed and this message sets you on a track for bigger and better things in your personal journey of growth.

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