I have trouble abiding

My son and I had the privilege of taking a summer trip to Paris in 2017. No agenda, no rules on what we had to do; just enjoy the city and soak it in. Sounds great right? But, I discovered I have a problem with relaxing and hanging out. I get fidgety and antsy. I have trouble staying in the moment and really being present.

The French don’t seem to have this problem. They can hang out in front of a café for hours, reading a book, people watching, talking politics or whatever. When Max and I would try this, we didn’t get far. Once I finished my (entirely too small) coffee and whatever pastry I was eating, I’d be thinking “okay… now what…” I would try to be present and still to enjoy this moment, who I was with and all that surrounded me. But it wasn’t nearly as easy I had assumed it would be. It seems I was thinking of someplace else and moving on to the next thing we would do.

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. 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. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (John 15:4-7 ESV)

A while back, if you had asked me what “abide” meant, I’d tell you it is sounds like a very Little House on the Prairie or Hallmark card kind of word. It sounds passive and a bit girlie (no offense). But oh, was I wrong. To abide is to actively persevere, to endure, to choose to remain when you may want to run, to continue to be present, to actively hold to…to survive.

Jesus loves you and wants your company.

He asks us to actively hang out with Him, get to know Him, be present with Him. And, if we do this, He promises us that we will blossom and “bear fruit”. We will benefit greatly from just being in His presence and hearing His wisdom. We will be effective in loving others. We will be fruitful. As believers in Jesus, we often say we love Jesus and want to be close to Him, but act in ways that say “I don’t really need you right now in this situation, I got this.” I can imagine Him sadly shaking his head and thinking, “you just don’t understand, Marcus.” I asked my children "If I said I loved you but didn't have the time to talk to you…didn’t involve you in my life…patted you on the head and then left…What would you think?" They strongly said something is very WRONG with that. Do you see where I am going with this? We do this to our Lord all the time.

The point isn't knowing about God… it is living with God.

Andy Stanley said, “You can spend your entire life believing in God but never have a relationship with Him. You can think you know everything about God and not know Him at all.”

We often stop abiding in Christ when the events of life cause us to stop trusting God on some level or we stop thinking that we need Him. When we are not in desperate times we compartmentalize God's involvement and authority. "He isn't in this particular part of my life. (job, kids, money, sex life, in-laws, traffic...). But, we are foolish to shut him out of any of it.

Oh, if you and I could only get just how much He loves us. He loves you, and wants to have a relationship with you. He is a loving father that wants the best for you. His desire is to see us grow, mature, and fully display the beauty He created us for. He calls you His handiwork and He wants to spend time with you. He promises that if you will, He will listen to you. The Lord of the Universe will actually listen to YOU. You can ask anything you want, and it will be given to [be done for; come to] you. Like any good father, He will not give you what is bad for you. But, His desire is to bless. The more you hang out with Jesus, the more you understand what you really need and want.