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Stay Connected

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:5

Jesus takes His disciples aside to prepare them for His departure and the problems they'll face after He's gone. Listen: "I am the Vine; you are the branches, apart from me you can do nothing...I chose you to go and bear fruit - fruit that will last" (John 15: 5 & 16). Notice: 1) You understand who you are only in relationship to Christ! He tells them: "Apart from Me you can do nothing". When you forget that, you end up trying to do things only God can do; like solving your problems your own way, or promoting yourself through clever strategies. You're not blessed in any endeavor because of your performance; you're blessed because of your connection to the Vine. Unless you understand that, you'll waste your time chasing people who have no more power than you do. Your strength and success are in the Vine! Just stay connected! 2) Before you get the fruit that remains, you have to lose the fruit that's temporary! Listen: "every branch that does bear fruit He prunes" (John 15:2). You can be a good branch connected to a good vine bearing good fruit and suddenly God starts cutting back certain things in your life. Things you thought would always be there are taken away. Now it feels as if you're going backwards. It takes faith to believe that God would permit you to lose what you're proud of, what you draw your security from, in order to give you something better, fruit that remains; enduring success. So the word for you today is, 'Let it go. God has something much better in store for you.'

Prayer
Heavenly Father, help me to stay focused on what YOU want me to be about and to accept the pruning you do in my life and the letting go of those things I do not need. In Jesus' Name, Amen