by Jeff Karber, Pastor, Valley Community Church, Sumas, WA
Many, if not all, of us have a desire to make a difference with our lives. We want to live lives of purpose. We want our lives to matter to the people around us. What do you think is the key to seeing that desire become a reality?
Is the key to a fruitful life to have financial success so that you can give back to others? Is it about doing selfless acts of service for others? Is it about loving the people closest to you, or reaching out to touch the lives of as many people as possible? Is the key to living a fruitful life about bringing justice to those who lack it?
I believe that these are all very important ways that people can make a difference in this world, and there are many other ways that I haven’t mentioned. But I don’t think any of these things is the key to living a life of true meaning and purpose.
During Jesus’s last day before He went to the cross, He focused on the things He most wanted the disciples to understand before He went back to heaven. He had spent every day with them for 3 years, and now it was His last chance to drive home the main things He wanted them to remember. On that day, He taught the disciples the key to a fruitful life. The key is found in the Gospel of John, Chapter 15.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:4, 5, ESV
Stay connected to Jesus, and you will bear fruit.
A branch that is cut off from the plant cannot produce fruit because it is not connected to the nutrients it needs to stay alive and grow. In the same way, the person who is disconnected from Jesus is powerless to do the things that truly matter because he or she is disconnected from the Source of life. But when we stay connected to Jesus, His life flows through us and bears fruit.
So how can we stay connected to Jesus so that we will bear fruit? Daily Bible reading and prayer are an example of a way to connect to Jesus. I encourage you, if you have not done so already, to begin the discipline of setting aside time every day to meet with Jesus through reading the Bible and praying. Jesus Himself modeled this when He came to the earth. However, I believe that this is only part of what Jesus meant when He taught the disciples to abide in Him.
If you want to get to know someone better than you know them now, what is the best way to do that? The obvious answer is to spend more time with them. We get to know someone on the deepest levels when we spend a lot of time with them every day, and in various situations. The good and bad days. The happy and sad days. The moments when we feel close, and the moments when we feel at odds with each other.
In reality, most of us aren’t able to spend the majority of our day reading our Bible and praying. So staying connected to Jesus must go beyond daily Bible reading and prayer. Have you ever thought about taking Jesus with you throughout your day? Have you considered staying connected with Jesus while you work?
Let me illustrate. A few years ago, I realized that I was unintentionally leaving Jesus out of my work life, and it was having a negative effect on my work. I would get so frustrated sometimes that it was actually slowing down my productivity. So in my time with God before work, I began asking Jesus to help me be the best worker I could be, and to help me not be so frustrated. I started to notice a slight improvement, but I knew I had more progress to make. I would still get frustrated and struggle to get back on track. That’s when I realized that I was missing an opportunity during my work day to connect to Jesus and access His life-giving resources. I began using my frustrations as a “trigger” to remind myself to ask Jesus for help. Before typing out an email, I would ask Him to help me to see things from the customer’s point of view, to give me the words to use that would communicate what I needed to in a way that would help the customer and communicate respect. That’s when I really started to gain traction. I still have a lot of room to grow in this, but it’s a start.
You can do the same thing, too. As you go to your work station at the start of the day, and coming off breaks, you can silently ask Jesus to help you do your job in a way that pleases Him and benefits others. When you come across a frustrating work situation, or a disagreement with a co-worker, you can ask Jesus to help you represent Him in the way He would want to be represented.
And don’t forget to stay connected to Jesus at home with your family, with your friends, at the gym, at church, at the store. You get the idea! How would your marriage relationship change if you were being influenced by Jesus while interacting with your spouse? How would your parenting change if you were to ask Jesus for help and direction when you are with your kids? How would your decision-making improve if you were to ask Jesus for His input before making your choice?
The point is that the more we stay connected to Jesus, the more His life can flow into us. And the more His life flows into us, the more He will be able to make a true difference in this world through us. What is your next step to grow your connection to Jesus?