ABIDE IN LOVE
May 11, 2020
Prayer: Oh, Lord Jesus, I know Your Word assures me that You love me, but the idea of abiding means drawing near to You and sometimes, I am so ashamed of my failures and shortcomings that I doubt You are happy with me or even like me enough for me to feel comfortable seeking You let alone asking to abide with You. Help me, Lord Jesus, to understand and accept Your forgiving grace because I know Your word assures me that You are trustworthy and patient; that you have forgiven my sins and, most of all, that You see me as a loving child—your beloved. My head and my heart need to be single-minded; in harmony and confident of those assurances. Abide with Me Lord Jesus. Nourish me with your cherishing love. Enfold my bruised heart in your warm arms of grace today. And, then Lord Jesus, use me as a vessel to flow that out into the lives of those I love. Amen
Scripture: As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. John 15:9 NKJV
Apostle John wrote the Gospel of John and I and II John. In those three rather small books of the Bible, he uses the word “abide” 43 times. It is used as a command, a warning, as a call to a more intimate love relationship, as a promise, and as an invitation to godly living.
The word “abide” conveys remaining close, attached to something or someone in a firm and immovable manner. Abiding means to long for, thirst and hunger for more of something in your life. Abiding with Jesus Christ is like that most important relationship in our life—we want to spend all the time we can simply enjoying His company. But, equally because Jesus Christ loves us, He wants us to stay close to Him; to stay in His love.
In fact, Jesus Christ—our Friend—wants to abide with you and me more that we might want to abide with Him. Jesus said, “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.” (John 15:9)
Staying close to God’s love means staying close through prayer, listening and talking with Him, mediating and reading His word and remaining obedient to the principals He has laid out so He can bless us with more—more of Himself and His Grace. If we really understood the power and blessings that would flow through abiding, we would come away feeling so full, so nourished and so cherished by His love that we would race back to Him whenever we could.
Copyright by LaRae Munk. Email: [email protected].