A Thought a Day...
Thursday, February 17, 2005
"He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. " John 15:2
I've been thinking about this verse a lot recently. In my yard we have a tree that has overgrown so much that it is becoming a problem. It is encroaching on the power lines in front of the house; it is dropping branches on the roof; the acorns and leaves are covering the ground so heavily that it is killing what grass can grow because there is so much shade. I'm going to have to cut it back and thin it out. My problem is to know how and which limbs to cut. I'm going to have to hire a tree surgeon to do it properly.
Christ is saying that we are the branches and He is the vine. That God will cut away branches that do not bear fruit and will prune the branches that do. Why is that important? I did some work for a citrus fruit grove in Florida one time. There I learned about sucker branches. These are branches that don't have any fruit on them. What these branches do is to draw nutrients from the tree for their own survival... Nutrients that could be used to develop larger and sweeter fruit. So the grove owner would go through and trim those branches from the tree so that more sap reaches the fruit. But he didn't stop there... Every fall he would cut back the tip of the branches that did bear fruit. Then in the spring the new growth would take place leaving the tree healthier. The cool thing about this pruning process was that many of the cuttings were used to create new trees.
So, I wonder why does God cut me back? Is it because I'm not bearing fruit? Or, is it that he is going to transplant parts of my efforts to bear fruit somewhere else?
Father, this morning I'm affected deeply by my need to bear fruit. How I need to carry out you command to make disciples, more disciples and better disciples. My prayer is that if I must be pruned, that it is so that I can bear more and sweeter fruit. Keep me close to the trunk... I don't want to be cut away from you and cast on that pile of branches at the curb. Show me how I can bear more fruit.
Wednesday, February 09, 2005
I'm back online. It's been a long dry spell due to computer problems (I don't want to hear it from you MAC users!) but my system has been rebuilt. I'll be making some changes... For one, I'll only be posting about once a week or so. Why? For one, I'll be working on the East Coast for the foreseeable future, so the purpose of the blog... To share devotions with my wife while on opposite sides of the country is no longer necessary. Another reason is that I have a huge plate with personal projects for this year, and I have to make some choices.
Just in case you're interested, here's my personal list for the year:
Write a book. I've been offered the opportunity to co-author a book on discipleship this year. It's going to be a big project and will consume most of my available time.
Learn Spanish. Marcia and I are taking a two week trip around the horn in February next year for our anniversary. I'm hoping to be able to converse some when we get to South America.
Discipleship Vision Team. I'm currently serving on our church's Discipleship Vision team. This is a big responsibility for me to take on, and it'll take a considerable amount of time.
Missions Committee. I'm serving on the Missions Committee at the church this year. I'm most likely going to be heading up the Missions Fair / Faith Promise program for 2006.
Beat my brother at golf. OK.... It's a dream, but there's room for that, too.
My plans are to post here about once a week, generally at the middle of the week. I'm not sure what the flavor of the day will be, but for now I'll continue the study in John for a while.
Until tomorrow...
Thursday, January 13, 2005
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener." John 15:1
Jesus has just said, Let's get out of here... But according to the verse 1 in Chapter 18, it doesn't look like they actually leave the upper room for a few more minutes. In reality the 3 chapters that John writes between Christ saying let's go and when they actually do is not but a couple of minutes. Christ finishes his discussion with His followers, then says a prayer and they leave. I've taken that walk, it's about a half hour walk from the traditional site of the Upper Room and the olive grove on the Mount of Olives on the other side of the Kidron Valley. They could have been talking as they walked, maybe they were cleaning up after themselves in the Upper Room after the Passover Feast. There doesn't seem to be a lot of servants since Christ started off the feast by doing the servant work of washing their feet. It doesn't really matter, but I often have wondered if they were walking along on the way to the Kidron when Christ would see a local grape vine and use it as an object lesson. Either way, this is verse begins one of the most well known passages in the New Testament.
For me, this verse establishes a relationship... Or rather explains the relationship between Christ and his Father. He is the vine, the living organism that embodies the church and all who are in it. That entity is tended by the Father.
I'm a horrible horticulturalist. I've got a black thumb... But I do grow weeds really well. I need to do a lot of work in my yard. I've got a honey-do list a mile long, but it seems that I never am able to get to it. That's the problem with being an options person... I've got honey-do ADD. Everything seems to get my attention and have a higher priority than does my home work. There have been some reasons for that lately, personal health and family health issues have made it difficult to get much done around the house. This weekend I have to get some of that work done. I've been remiss.
I'm glad when it comes to the Christ, and the relationship with his Father they don't have my problem of neglecting the work. I was recently out in the Sonoma Valley of California. When touring the wine vineyards in that area, they were pristinely kept. Each vine was meticulously cared for by an expert in vine care. God, our Father, is that vineyard expert for his Son. Father's should be like that... They should love their sons (and daughters) so much that they are willing to tend them, train them, grow them, nurture them. I wasn't always successful as a Dad, I guess I should have listened better.
Father, this morning we see a small part of the picture of what it means to be a Father... The care and the love you give to your Son. Now, let me get more serious about doing what I am supposed to be doing with those in my charge. Let me tend them, train them, grow them, nurture them. I'll do what I can and count on you for the results.
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
"Come now; let us leave. " John 14:31b
The Passover meal is finished; Christ has told the Disciples that he is living; He has promised that there would be one to take His place; Now it is time for the plan of the ages to be put in to action. For me... On this side of the cross... I can't wait to hear these words. I can't wait for the day when He returns, gathers the believers together and says, "Come now, let us leave".
Until then, I have a job to do. Not only am I to express my love to Christ by keeping His commands, I'm also to take along as many people as I can. That's not always so easy. I don't have a problem declaring that I'm a follower of Jesus. I have more of a problem in doing what I'm expected to do... Or rather... What I know I should do. But I have a real problem communicating the importance of giving oneself completely to the Christ. I'm not the only one. This is at the center of the Postmodern movement in many churches... But I'd sure like to find a way to do a mind meld with those who are not followers... Or more realistically, I would like to get through to those who have already declared themselves as a follower. I've committed this year to working with the Discipleship Vision Team at our church. The team will be working to find ways to promote spiritual growth among the body at Fort Caroline. I have concerns, I have hopes, I have a dream that we can really make a difference.
Father, I can't wait to hear you say, "Let's go!" But will I be ready? When the Disciples heard your son say this, they had no clue as to what laid ahead for them. I wonder if the words of that evening really made a difference? Or was it the events of the next 50 days that made a difference? In any case, you promised one who would bring all things to mind... You have said, "If I lack wisdom, then just ask for it"... So I am today. Now, I've got to get to work. Thank you for listening.
Thursday, January 06, 2005
"I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me. " John 14: 30,31a
Jesus loved His father, and my brother and I love our father as well. Today, our Dad is going to be undergoing surgery to fuse three vertebrae in his back. Because of the prince of this world, we have pain and sorrow... We have illness and infirmity. But because Jesus was willing to obey His Father to the very end we have victory. What more is there to say?
Father, you know Bill and I love you and trust you today to take care of our earthly dad. Guide the surgeon's hand. Give those who are awaiting anxiously the results peace. Thank you for sending your son to us, to show us how to love and obey our fathers. Thank you for fathers who love you enough to dedicate their lives in service and obedience to you.
Wednesday, January 05, 2005
"I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe." John 14:29.
A lot has taken place since my last posting. I've been home for a couple of weeks, which generally means that I don't post, since the primary purpose for this blog is to share devotional thoughts with my wife, I've been in the hospital, been traveling, and all sorts of various and sundry activities. However, I'm back in a routine, and blogging is a part of that routine. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and I wish you a great new year.
There was a time when I a number of my friends were people who were involved in the New Age. A big thing for many of those acquaintance was divination, whether it be tarot cards, psychics, tea leaves or Oiji, for that matter. Anything they could to get a jump on what was going to happen in the future. I have friends today that are involved with Prophecy churches where much of their emphasis is on the same things, but their source of information is attributed to the Holy Spirit. It still amazes me how fascinated people are with knowing what the future holds. In today's verse, Christ simply tells his disciples that he is telling them in advance so that they will know who he is. He is telling them in advance so they will know his power. He is telling them before it happens so they won't be shocked. He is telling them what is going to happen in the future so they will know the future is a bright one.
I'm glad I don't know everything about the future. I can figure things out most of the time. I'm very much a cause and effect kind of person. Perhaps I've read to much Maslov and have been brainwashed about the need to be self-actualized. Maybe it's a control thing: I like being in control of my own destiny. But there is a part of me that wants to read the end of the book. To know that everything is going to work out OK. To know that "all things work together for good to them that know the Lord and are called according to His purpose." I guess I'm not so different after all.
Father, I'd like to think that I'm different from the world... But I'm not. I may not smoke or chew, or run with girls who do... But there are parts of my behavior that is just are there because it's what's acceptable or that I interpret as being what is right. Change me from the inside out. Form me in to the person you want me to be. Oh, and before I forget it, thanks in advance, since you've already told me how it will turn out.
Friday, December 17, 2004
"You heard me say, 'I am going away and I am coming back to you.' If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. " John 14:28.
I've been reading the rest of this chapter and the fifteenth chapter. I have never noticed how much Jesus repeats himself in these three chapters. This is another verse that essentially summarizes what he has already said. One of these days, I'm going to write about all the repeated statements in this last discourse of Christ.
I was starting to get a bit irritated... Well irritated is too strong a word... Let me just say, bored(?) at how Christ is repeating himself through this section of chapter 14. Then I realized, in forty-five years of reading the Bible, I had never noticed the repetition. What does this say to me about my attention span? What does this say to me about how much I've really paid attention?
This is a wonderful, comforting verse, and Jesus wants to make sure the Disciples hear it. They are not sitting there with their notebook computers and PDAs taking notes... They are listening and they have just been told that Christ, their faithful friend, companion and leader is leaving. They must have been in a mild state of shock based upon their reaction. I know how I've felt when a good friend has told me they are moving to another city... And we didn't spend 24 x 7 together the way Jesus and the Disciples did. It is important that Christ makes sure they hear this wonderful promise: He is leaving, but he is coming back.
At this time of the year I'm spending a lot of time thinking about the Lord's advent. It seems what he is really wanting me to focus on is the next time he's coming.
Father, thank you for reminding me about what is important: That I am prepared for your return. I know it must have been difficult for the Disciples to hear you were leaving. But as you have said, it is a good thing, because it enabled you to set in motion the rest of your plan... The coming of the Holy Spirit, and ultimately... Your return. There is only one thing I can say... Come, Lord Jesus... And don't wait too long, OK?
