Abiding: Worship Beyond Sunday

Abide: “To remain or stay in a given place, state, or relation. It conveys a sense of persistence and continuity, often implying a steadfastness or enduring presence.” In the New Testament, it pictures a continual connection with Christ. (Bible Hub definition from Strong’s Concordance)

Abiding is not a difficult concept when we consider occupying our homes. Everything we do revolves around it or helps us make it better. We buy groceries and cleaning supplies to make it livable. We work to pay for our home and for the needs of those who live in it. We attend church to learn how to better relate to the people inside of our home, as well as the One who gave it to us. Our home becomes the center of everything we do.

However, Jesus is a Person, not a place. How does one abide in a Person?

Bible Hub goes on to relate abiding as a picture of a rabbi and his disciples. The disciples stay close to their teacher, learning from him, and living as he does. If there is any better picture of abiding in the Person of Jesus, I do not know what it is.

Too often, we can compartmentalize our lives into the spiritual and the secular. Church and ministry are spiritual, everything else is secular…so the thinking goes. Elisabeth Elliot often said that making her husband’s soup was just as spiritual as writing another book or speaking at another ministry conference.  It is this thought that helped me immensely when I was “in the weeds” of motherhood. Often, outside ministry was limited because I needed to be home with my young children. If there is anything I could encourage young mothers with now, it is the rearview mirror of wisdom that tells me just how important a ministry it was to spend time teaching and loving my children well. It is a beautiful gift to watch them live out the ingrained, daily character lessons planted so many years ago. Truly, the spiritual is a daily investment not relegated to the Sunday School room only.

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. John 15:5

Just like our physical home becomes a place everything else revolves around, so too does a daily abiding in the Person of Jesus Christ. Everything we do relates to our relationship with Him.

• We care for our physical temples well, so that we can accomplish His work in us as long and as well as possible.
• We carefully tend to our spirit, feeding it with His Word and conversing with Jesus throughout the day.
• We care for the people He has placed in our lives well, loving them out of our love of Jesus.
• We look for opportunities to share His love with those whose lives touch our own, pointing them to Him to meet their deepest needs.
• We fully surrender our days to Him to accomplish what He would accomplish if He were here. Sometimes we must crucify the desires and outcomes that would make things easier so that He can accomplish the bigger picture we cannot see.
• The little things of life, wiping little noses, cooking nourishing food, speaking kind truth to opposing ears, cleaning up the endless supply of dirty dishes: all of these become an offering of worship to the One we abide with daily.

Abiding in Jesus is not difficult. He simply becomes the center of our lives, much like our Homes are our central place of residence.  A relationship with Him tethers our purposes, plans, and priorities to Him, resulting in the natural fruit-bearing He promises.

These are just a few thoughts as I slowly soak in the book of John. If I could pick just one book of the Bible to slowly absorb, it would certainly be this one. I would love to hear what you are “soaking in” from the Word these days. Feel free to share in the comments below!

Erica B.