My good friend was recently telling me about how she was studying John 15. She was reiterating how she had been on passage because it was so powerful. As I read that today, I was overcome with imagery about what the Lord was saying.
“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. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned."
I was deeply reminded it is impossible to bear the fruits of the spirit if you are not all encompassed to the Word. God’s Word, that is a living Word, gives us instructions for living by the fruit of the spirit which is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I don’t know about you, but some of those on that list are extremely difficult for me to live out daily. What really caught my attention was the verse "if you are not connected you begin to wither." I love gardening and plants in spring and summer, but inside plants have never exactly worked out for me. Even though I am in my house every day, somehow I would forget to water the poor plants. First their leaves would begin to droop ever so faintly, then turn slightly brown, and before I knew it, they were dead. I didn’t do it on purpose, but because I wasn’t diligent to provide nourishment the plant suffered. Someone came up with this genius idea, for people like me, of a cylinder you place in the plant filled with water that last thirty days!!! So for thirty days, the plant gets a steady flow of water, which nourishes it and allows it to blossom! You see the cylinder was diligently delivering the water everyday, in the right amount. If we are diligent in Gods Word, he will be faithful to nourish our souls and allow us to produce much spiritual fruit. It can’t be something we do once a week, or once a month. To be able to produce the fruits of the spirit, we must be walking in His Word daily, and having communication by prayer. When we are in tune with God, there will be no doubt we are in the will of God. I love the verse in Proverbs that says, “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” At times, God is leading us in one direction, but then the path turns and looks very different. There’s no reason to be alarmed, because if we are attached to the vine, then we are attached to God, if we are attached to God, then we are securely attached to His plan!