Abide In Me

The world we live in today is one such like as this earth has never seen before.   Information travels at the speed of light, and what happens on one side of the globe is known by those who live on the other side of the globe even as it is happening.  Never before in the history of mankind has information been so readily available with the click of a few keys.

For those of us who desire to live a simple lifestyle, and who are trying to live without some of the electronic means available, it is almost impossible to find yourself a quiet place of peace without some electronic device being part of that place.

In this world we live in, busy-ness is the word on everyone's lips.  "How are you doing today?"  "OH! I'm so busy, I'm so stressed, I've got so much to do... " and on it goes.  Everyone is so busy - busy doing things that - in the light of eternity - will they really matter?

This question I pondered myself recently.  With all the "busyness" and electronic information that we have available to us, has it served to better our lives?  With all the electronic devices that we have that makes giving, getting and understanding information much faster... has it really improved the quality of our lives?

I've stopped to rethink, and ponder the quality of our life.  Is my life pleasing to the Lord in all I do? Have I allowed the "busyness" that life offers up to take the place of the simple, quiet things in life that really bring the most joy?

My answer was found in the book of John and it has become one of my favorite scriptures.  Its message is deep and timeless.  It speaks today, even in the noise of the hustle and bustle world we live in.  Its message is one we desperately need to hear.

John 15:7  

"If ye abide in me, 

and my words abide in you, 

ye shall ask what ye will, 

and it shall be done unto you."

Abide In Me.   

Three simple words.   

Simple yet difficult!

How could abiding be difficult you may ask?

Because in the "busyness" of today's world, finding time to "abide in me" may the hardest thing of all to do.  Finding a place where the beeps, blips, and clicks of our electronic attachments don't keep us from the place where we can abide in Him is... difficult!

How long can you spend time with the Lord before a beep, a ring, a click, or a tap knocks on your time with the Lord, and that abiding time is interrupted?

Abide in me!  It is not enough to abide in the presence of the Lord, but we must allow the WORD of the Lord to abide in us as well.  When these two things are accomplished, something very, very powerful can take place in your life.  When you abide in the Lord, and His Word abides in you... ye shall ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you.

A simple equation (or so it seems)! 

Abide in the Lord + His Word abides in you = ye shall ask what ye will + it shall be done. 

Unfortunately many people interpret the last part of this scripture  that says "ask what ye will, it shall be done" to mean "whatever I want, I shall have".   And in a sense that is true.

But think about this.  If you are abiding in the Lord, and His Words are abiding in you....

Will you really be asking for things that *YOU* want, 

or will you be asking for things that HE wants?

You see, when Jesus came to this earth, he came to do the will of the Father.  It was not my will, but thine be done that Jesus prayed.  Jesus did not come to allow His earthly, fleshly will to prevail, but He came to show mankind how to live and do the will of the Father, effectively denying the will of the flesh.

Essentially this means - being willing to give up your will, the things you desire, the things that your flesh naturally wants, and allowing the spirit of the Lord and the words of the Lord to so penetrate your being, that you want HIS WILL above all things in your life.  When this transformation takes place, you will not ask amiss when you pray, because you will be praying for the will of the Lord, and not for the desires of your flesh.

Beware of the teaching that says you can ask what you will, and it shall be given unto you, because the scripture is not speaking of asking for fleshly desires and wants, but it is speaking of asking that the will of the Lord be done and manifested in your life, and that is what WILL be given unto you.

Do you want the will of the Lord in your life? Do you want to abide in Him so fully that your desire for His will to be yours supersedes every fleshly need and desire in your life?

It is when you find yourself so immersed in the presence of the Lord, and submitted to the Lord so fully and so completely, and it is when you can say, I must decrease, but HE must increase, that the Lord will be able to do just as this verse says "It shall be done unto you."

Perhaps this is not what you were hoping to hear while reading this.  In fact, our flesh never wants to hear things that don't allow our will and desires to rule.  Perhaps this angers you, the fact that in order to truly abide in the Lord, you must let go of self so fully that the Lord reigns completely in your life.

You are not alone.

Even Jesus, in the Garden of Gethsemane wrestled all night long with the agony of flesh and spirit over doing the will of the Father.  For Him, He knew it meant certain death to allow the spirit and will of the Father to reign.  Yet, He was willing, and because of the price that He paid, He paved the way for you, and for me to obtain an entrance into a place where the will of the Lord becomes ours, and miraculous events can and will take place once you have surrendered yourself to the will of God, and sacrificed your fleshly desires on the altar of repentance.

Perhaps this is a message you have never heard before, but in your heart, you know that what is being spoken is truth.  Truth spoken in love, I pray.

I pray that you will desire to seek after the Lord with all of your heart, being willing to surrender and give up the desires of your flesh.  Indeed, for all of us, Gethsemane must become our reality too, if we wish to really unlock and walk through the doors to spiritual maturity in Christ.  We must lay our will down willingly and learn to abide in Him, and allow His words to abide in us... and it will be at that point in your life that the miraculous will unfold, when situations in your life that you have prayed about for years will be transformed... no - it doesn't come with an easy pill to swallow, but it does come with a mountain of promises!

I pray that the Lord will encourage your heart today to accept the fact that Gethsemane is the place all who wish to follow Christ must walk through, and understand the very necessity of this event, in order to truly see the blessings that the Lord has promised us to come to pass in our lives.

Abiding in the Lord, and allowing His Word to completely abide in us comes with a promise so big the world cannot contain it!  When you see how Jesus set the example before us, surrendering His fleshly will in Gethsemane, and allowing certain death to take place in His life, it is after that time that we begin to see the most miraculous events take place from that point on.  It took death to self, in order to bring about eternal life.

When we abide in the Lord and his Words abide in us, and our fleshly will and desires have been surrendered to the Lord, it is then that we can begin to learn how to really pray, and see those prayers answered.   When we pray, it will be for the will of the Lord to be manifested in our lives, and not necessarily physical, or financial blessings - although the blessings of the Lord make us rich! - when the order of our prayer is first for HIS will to be done - it is then the equation mentioned above will ring true in your life, and the windows of heaven will be opened, and there will not be room to contain the blessings of the Lord!

It is a tremendous promise, but it starts with personal sacrifice.

A Gethsemane for each of us.  

Do you want to abide in Him?  Do HIS WORDS abide in you?

You must MAKE time to set the busyness of your life aside for the most important time that you will ever spend each day - abiding with Him. Shut out the electronic blips, beeps and clicks for the most important part of your day.  Your life will never be the same! That is a promise!

Abide in Me. 

His will, not mine. 

"It SHALL be done unto you"! 

Amen!