Have you ever felt restless, on edge, worried, troubled,
even stressed? Don’t we all! There is a quick remedy for these negative
emotions, however. Once we have faith in God’s faithfulness, we can enter into
His rest (Hebrews 4:1). He loved us so much that he died
for us while we were still sinners, He keeps His promises and He hides us under
the shelter of His wings (Psalm 91:4; Romans 5:6-11). He is
able to keep safe whatever we commit to Him (2 Timothy 1:12). We
access these benefits by casting all of our cares on Him and abiding in His
love, peace and rest (1 Peter 5:7).
The more we yield our will to God’s and submit our spirit,
soul and body to Him, the more we enter the security of His place of rest.
Surrendering to His Kingship and direction allows us to rest for eternity in
His everlasting arms (Deuteronomy 33: 26-28). His Spirit is in our heart to
guarantee our union with the triune God (Galatians 4:6; 2 Corinthians 5:5). His
peace protects our mind, choices and emotions. As we take His yoke upon us, He
deals with life in us, through us and instead of us (Galatians
2:20).
We are grafted as branches into the Vine, and we bear fruit
as the direct result of the life of His Spirit within us (John 15:5). We are
one with Him (John 17:21-22). This life-producing union gives
us rest and peace as His grace and mercy work out everything in our life for
our good (Romans 8:28). Without Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5).
Regardless of our circumstances, we push forward by His Spirit to capture all that
Jesus has in mind for us when He redeemed us (Philippians 3:12-13). He is a
safe dwelling place, in which we find complete rest for our soul (Isaiah
32:18; Matthew 11:29).
The vine cannot produce fruit without the branches and the
branch cannot produce fruit without its connection to the vine. We are totally
dependent upon Christ as He sends His nourishing life in and through us. Once
the Spirit births His fruit in us, He brings along others who need the fruit we
have to nourish their soul. We bring joy to our Father only as we submit to His
Spirit’s leading each moment of our day and walk in His will for us (Zephaniah
3:17; Galatians 5:16, 25). This only occurs as we enter His rest and abide in
the Vine (John 15:4-5).
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, You are our bridge over the troubled waters of life. We are inseparably connected to You as long as
we stay connected to the Vine. We bear the fruit Your Spirit produces in us. If
we refuse to stay connected we will wither up and die. If we decline to bear
fruit, God will prune us and cast us into the fire to be burned. We will abide
in You, our Vine. We give our self wholly to You to use for Your glory. We are
in You and You are in us, keeping us holy and acceptable to You (Romans
12:1). You give us Your strength and wisdom to live each day in You, as You
encourage and bless us.
Thought for the Day:
Due to God’s glory and excellence, he gave us great and
precious promises. Through these promises He enables us to share His divine
nature and to escape the world's corruption caused by sinful, human desires. - 2 Peter
1:4, Living Bible