Abide with Me

Abide with Me was one of my mother's favorite hymns and we sang it at her funeral.  It comes to me this morning as I read the scripture of the day in the app - "Pray as you Go".  John 15 :  1-5

 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. ² He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes^[a] to make it bear more fruit. ³ You have already been cleansed^[b] by the word that I have spoken to you. ⁴ Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. ⁵ I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing

Another word for abide is "remain" - remain in me.  As I sit on my porch in prayer and reflection I picture what it means to me to ABIDE or REMAIN in Jesus.  The image i have is me sitting at his feet and listening - like Mary when Martha was working in the kitchen.  I am abiding and I have found the "better thing"  - that is a life of following the way of Jesus.  It is a way of love, forgiveness, humility, courage in seeking justice, peace. 

Today is my last day to do the "Facebook Live" with my interviews of members of the church.  It has been very satisfying for me because it really is a time to hear how people "abide" in Jesus and bear fruit.  They are people with very ordinary lives - not like the folks I read about in the newspaper or on TV.  They are - like me - ordinary Christian people who have found meaning in their faith and in their life in the church.  I have been truly inspired every day as I sit and listen to their answers to my questions - especially the ones about times when they struggled and found strength in God and their philosophy of life.  For example, yesterday Becky said her philosophy was to trust God, to let go, and to be content whatever the circumstances.  That really is a recipe for peace.   She emphasized it is a "goal."

The other image that came to me today was Jesus kneeling at the feet of his disciples - washing their feet.  Preparing them to go out and to live a life serving others.  That is the life that everyone of these people are living and it inspires me.  I have heard about people who serve on committees, work in the kitchen, mow the yard, make music, reach out to others, help in worship.  Each person shared their involvement  and activity- not as duty and obligation - but as part of their life purpose. (no, they didn't use those words - those are mine!)

Another blessing of these two weeks has been the help of my daughter, Kacey.  Every day, she comes from Reynoldsburg to take care of the technology of putting this little project online.  She is now waiting to find out what is happening in the schools in the next few months.  She is a special education teacher, union rep  and mother and without a doubt is "bearing fruit" in using her gifts to help others during this really unsettling time. She inspires me more than she knows. 

So, I start this day and will soon prepare my Bible study for the facebook live and get ready for this last time.  It has been a real blessing as I get to see how ordinary people who trust God "bear fruit."  It is good.  It is very good.

May the God of EVERYDAY bless you,

;leading you by the hand through each moment,

calling your attention to each tiny trace of blessing threaded through your day.

At the end of every day may you be woven into

the loving arms of God and sleep peacefully as night falls.

May the God of EVERYDAY be with you.