On Abiding

Ruth Davidar Paul   |   December 30, 2022 

It's the end of another year and I can't help but compare how inherently different the end of this year is from last year. 2022 couldn't have been more different. Yet, while I have loved this new season of exploring new gifts and creative ventures, I feel a similar desire to reconnect with God as I did last year. 

And the sensing I have received over the last couple of weeks is a single word - abide

I sense God telling me to abide in Him. To stay. To remain in Him. To not rush ahead. And that has been my prayer every minute. Because my temperament is to start planning and doing ten thousand things when I'm in a good place emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Yet, I feel God is telling me to stay. To look at Him. Focus on Him. To remain in Him.

In John 15, Jesus says,

‘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)

Even as I meditate on what it means to abide in my Saviour, I’m learning new lessons.

Intentionality

Abiding doesn’t happen automatically. Like I said earlier, my default setting is to start making plans and executing them with efficiency. Yet, God is not inviting me to be a more efficient project manager - no, He is calling me to stay with Him in an attitude of trust and peace. And that requires me to consciously slow down, to stop jumping the gun, and be at peace with the pace my Lord has set for my life in this season. 

Trust

But intentionality can only flow from a place of absolute trust. Unless I trust every word the Lord has said, and believe implicitly that He truly is sovereign and in control, I will find it very hard to intentionally abide in Him. While there is a space for questions and honest conversations with our Heavenly Father, there is also this place where we need to arrive -  the place of a weaned child. Being weaned implies that the child trusts the parent to provide sustenance when required without needing to bawl the house down!

New Revelations

As I’ve been practising abiding in Him in times of difficulty and suffering, I gain intimate glimpses of a loving God - fresh revelations of His peace and new understanding to face each day. Abiding happens every day. And as I abide, I learn to appreciate my Lord more. It's a beautiful progression that isn’t humanly possible. 

I pray that I will grow in this discipline in the coming year. Because as He says, unless I abide in Him, I can do nothing!

So, this season, I am choosing to abide. I hope you do too!

 

Photo by Flor Saurina on Unsplash

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Ruth Davidar Paul is a freelance editor, writer, and recently, an artist. She has lived in several cities across India and currently calls Chennai home, where she lives with her husband Abhishek and their children Abigail, Jordan, and Amy. She blogs at https://inkhorn.home.blog/ and paints @quaintstains on Instagram.

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One comment on “On Abiding”

  1. Absolutely love this, Ruth. I resonate with all this. This was my lesson for last year and it's been a constant learning and yearning- to abide in Him and grow in intimate trust, love and contentment, and obedience.

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