7 Tips to Practical Abiding in Jesus

by Kelly

If you’ve been following my past couple of posts (“Dead Things” and “Soul Food”), I’ve shared what the Holy Spirit has taught me about abiding in Him. The decision to make Jesus head of our lives is the most important decision we can make! But what happens after we’ve made that commitment? The answer to that question is: RELATIONSHIP. God desires us to seek Him (Jeremiah 29:13), and be close to Him. Like a shepherd who knows his sheep, God knows us. But, He also wants us to know HIM! In the New Testament, Jesus is very clear on what this relationship should look like and stresses the importance of abiding in Him. Through the book of John, we hear Jesus’ words to His disciples encouraging them to “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me” - John 15:4 (NASB). Below are some practical tips to use (sometimes day by day) in our lives to help us abide in the only source of abundant living.

1. Take inventory of things that are distracting you from Jesus.

Whoever coined the phrase, “Recognition is the first step to recovery”, couldn’t have been more dead on. Recognizing the things in our lives that are hindering us, holding us back, draining us, distracting us, etc. is where recovery can begin! Following Jesus, I find it very helpful to regularly take out my journal and list the things that are in my life making it hard for me to focus on Him. Some of the things the Holy Spirit convicts me on and are obvious, but many of the things I write are things I enjoy. They are things that bring me happiness short-term, but are completely devoid of joy. They are dead (more on Dead Things in Abiding Part One post). Something about listing these things out on paper makes them tangible but also makes them conquerable. To me, itemizing these distractions, these idols, these fleshly desires that I can be quick to substitute for God is the catalyst for change. It is also my way of looking the enemy square in the eyes and saying, “I’m on to you”. The Bible says, “But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” - Matthew 6:33 (ESV). My heart is ready to seek His Kingdom first. The benefits of throwing off all that unnecessary weight at the foot of the cross far outweighs the faux joy (aka happiness) I have been aimlessly enjoying. So, what are you waiting for? Grab a pen, some paper, and get to writing!

2. Set a date and make it a priority

When determining when we’re going to set aside some time to meet with the creator of...oh...I don’t know...THE UNIVERSE, we shouldn’t have this attitude of, “let me see if I can pencil you in sometime next week”. We certainly don’t have that mentality when we brush our teeth in the morning, or when we go to work, do we? (weeeellll….in my case...nevermind). A relationship isn’t a relationship if it’s one-sided. Those types of deals never end up working out. Jesus knows us (Jeremiah 1:5) right down to our DNA. But He desires for us to know Him. Setting aside daily, uninterrupted time in His word (AKA every Christian’s instruction manual) and talking to Him (AKA praying) is how we begin to know Him. Mike and I have found that our day runs a whole lot smoother when we set our alarm in the mornings and meet with Jesus before the kids wake up and before the hustle and bustle begins. Mike has his favorite spot in the house, and I have mine. We meet independently with Jesus. Those still, sweet, uninterrupted moments of solitude and serenity (and coffee) with our King is something we look forward to when we lay our heads down at night. What started as kind-of tough (I’ve never been a morning person) has quickly became my favorite part of the day. If nothing else goes right in my day, if things scheduled fall apart, if people bail on me, I can depend on Jesus showing up to meet with me in the early hours of the morning. So, don’t hesitate! The most important appointment of your day is waiting! Grab that iPhone and tell Siri to set a reminder to meet with Jesus. Make sure to mention the word: DAILY.

3. I'm not kidding about making it daily

When the Israelites were wandering around in the desert God provided them with “bread from Heaven” (aka “manna”) everyday for forty years (Exodus 16). His instructions to Moses to pass onto the Israelites were clear, “I will rain down bread from Heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day.” - Exodus 16:4 (NIV). Now, I’m no theologian, but there seems to be an awful lot of similarities between God’s provision of daily bread to the Israelites in the Old Testament to Jesus’ instructions to us in the accounts of the gospels. As Manna was the bread for sustenance to the Israelites, Jesus is the bread for sustenance to me and you! (John 6:48-51). Just as the Israelites had to go out in the morning and gather enough bread for the day, we have to make our meeting with Jesus a DAILY requirement. We don’t just breathe when it’s convenient for us, do we? Of course not! Breathing is a daily function required to survive. Like breathing, meeting with Jesus daily must become apart of who we are, what we do, and how we live. He is our only source of hope, joy, love, peace and everything in between!

4. Open the Bible and get familiar with it

For a long while, I skated by on journaling and every so often I’d close my eyes and thumb through the pages of the Bible and use my pointer finger to point out a verse that I was just convinced God wanted me to read. I’d read it not really knowing what it meant and then almost as soon as I finished reading, my eyes would gloss over and I’d forget it. Like a sword on the ground during a sword fight, my Bible was always available but rarely accessed. It wasn’t until God opened my eyes that I realized the Bible was more than just a book. It’s a book that is “the word of God and is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword” (Hebrews 4:12). It’s literally a weapon! Let me just cut it to you straight...here’s just one out of many reasons it’s important for us to read our Bibles: We live in a dark and evil world full of lies and deception. The Bible tells us that we have a very real enemy who prowls around looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). He’s not obvious in his approach, but rather cunning and crafty. Many things and many people (even those who profess to come in the name of Christ) seem “good”. Peter warns to “be on the alert” - 1 Peter 5:8 (NASB). Usually once we realize we’ve had the wool pulled over our eyes, it’s been pulled for quite some time. There’s no getting around the fact that we will be lied to. But if you had a portable lie detector that you could take anywhere and everywhere with you, wouldn’t you use it? So, let’s stop admiring our sharp, shiny, ever-present swords lying on the ground and pick them up, and FIGHT!

5. Meditate on scripture day and night

As much as I like to lay my head on my pillow at night and drift off to mindless scrolling through Facebook, it doesn’t do much for my relationship with Christ. In fact, it does the opposite in that it gives the devil the dreaded foothold. What starts as a way to “escape” and just “do nothing” for a hot second, turns into nasty comparison, envy, sadness, and greed (over other people’s “seemingly” perfect lives). Don’t get me wrong: Not everything I scroll past emits those feelings, but nonetheless, this is in no way a King wants his sons and daughters falling asleep at night. Speaking of king, David notes in Psalm chapter 1 how blessed is the man whose delight is found in the law of the Lord, “And in His law he meditates day and night” - Psalm 1:2 (NASB). We’ve covered the morning part (tip #4 above), but what we haven’t talked about is the night time part. In continuation of tip #4 (to open our Bibles), I’d like to point out that I've found it’s not only crucial to just read The good book, but to know it. Memorize it. Memorizing it makes it possible for us to think on scripture even after our eyes are shut. Happy dreaming!

6. Filter what comes in: Guard your heart and your mind.

We may not be able to control what happens to us, but we can control what we watch, what we listen to, who we choose to hang out with, and the environment we put ourselves in. All things that you have the power to control, and all things that start with a decision. Every day I have a decision to make. Am I going to continue entering through the wide gate that leads to destruction or enter through the narrow gate that leads to life (Matthew 7:13-14). Moral of the story: We should be aware of the two gates and make conscience decisions to choose the latter gate, and keep choosing it no matter how unpopular the world sees it. Let's be some of the “few” who find life (Matthew 7:14). We must be super vigilant about what we’re allowing to permeate the recesses of our hearts and minds. The bible says to “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life” Proverbs 4:23 (ESV).

7. PRAY

I saved the best tip for last. This one holds a special place in my heart for a lot of different reasons, but to make a long story short: I wouldn’t be on this earth if it wasn’t for prayer. I am fortunate to still have my grandparents on this side of eternity, and I am convinced if it weren't for their earnest prayers for me throughout my life, I wouldn't be here. I’m urging you if you do nothing else that we’ve talked about in this post, keep praying. Pray when you wake up. Pray out loud. Pray on your knees. Pray in the shower. Pray on your way to work. Pray with your kids. Pray with your spouse. Pray in your head. But for the love of all things good and decent, PRAY. Keep talking to Jesus. Keep voicing your concerns, keep questioning things, keep thanking Him, keep lifting your voice, keep asking. No prayer is too big for the God who created the galaxies. He may not answer how we think he should answer, but he always answers. He is the answer.

Jesus longs for a relationship with you. With me. With all of us. No matter what we've done, how far we’ve wandered, it’s not too late. Abundant living in Christ is waiting. Are you ready?