THE ABIDING IN JESUS SERIES-DAY FIVE

Empty Baskets or Filled to the Brim…

In our study of recent, we have been looking at abiding in the Savior and in my last writing; we took a quick peek at the scriptures that deal with bearing fruit. In our study today, let’s examine more closely what Jesus says about those that bear fruit and how much is enough.

In John 15, we read the following; “He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that bears fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me, and I in him, he will bear much fruit. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” Verses 2,5,8

In Dr. Wilkerson’s book, Secrets of the Vine, he tells a very poignant story of a person visiting a vineyard at harvest time. As they travel throughout the different terraces of vines, they notice the baskets set at the end of each row of vines. Peering into each one as they pass, they notice four distinctive levels of productivity from the corresponding vines….

EMPTY….barren vines produce no harvest

SOME FRUIT…..some work and some care produces some fruit

MORE FRUIT …. At last, hard work and some careful pruning produce a reasonable harvest….and lastly,

ABUNDANTLY FILLED TO OVERFLOWING….This is the harvest the vineyard keeper expected when he planted his vineyard.

These are the levels of abundance that God sees in the lives of His children and He is either very proud or greatly disappointed in the harvest. There should be no doubt in any follower of Jesus that God created us to bring about abundance and to produce a great harvest, so the question that faces us all….are you an empty basket or one brimming and overflowing with the fruit you have produced for your Heavenly Father? So, how to we know if we are producing the fruit in our lives that can make a heavenly difference in the life of someone else? I think the answer is quite simple...are the changes that God has wrought in your life making an impact in the lives of those who are closest to you? Are you lending a hand without being asked? Are you encouraging a fallen brother or sister in Christ with words of love and deeds of kindness? Are you telling others through your lifestyle of giving and sacrifice that following in obedience to the Holy Spirits' direction brings you closer to Jesus as you learn more each day how to abide in Him? 

If so, keep up the good work? If not, don't you think it's about time you got started seeking the Lord's calling for you life in the mundane or the magnificent opportunities He provides each day for those who seek His will and trust and obey His directions.

Should you desire to learn more about the abundance that God expects from you and how He is prepared to help you breakthrough as His disciple, I challenge you to get Dr. Bruce Wilkerson’s book and dive in….your empty basket is waiting to be filled!

Living in the abundance …tending the vines,

WPQ 

Poem for the day...

If you are living for the Master

By working diligently each day.

And you're planting in His vineyard

So good crops will come your way.

 

Remember Christ is the Vine Dresser

And sometimes He will take the shears;

To trim away the dead wood

Of your failures and your fears.

 

For He knows that in so doing

He will see new growth and more.

And your baskets with a bumper crop

Will overflow like ne'er before!

 

WPQ © April 2018

THE ABIDING IN JESUS SERIES- DAY FOUR

Bearing Fruit…'Tis the Season

I love the spring season as the earth begins to re-bud and refurbish itself. The trees are once again full of leaves and blossoms… and that means delicious fruit can’t be far behind. 

In Dr. Wilkerson’s book, he teaches that for us to abide in Christ and to know that we are doing so; all one must do is look at the fruit we are producing. John 15: 5, 8 say the following; “I am the Vine and you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit.”

In these simple, yet profound words that came out of the mouth of our Lord, just hours before He died, we learn our true reason for being…the only reason that we still call this planet home as a follower of Jesus Christ …we have been left behind to BEAR MUCH FRUIT. So the question becomes….What is fruit and how do I know if I am bearing much, little or none at all?

For many, the biblical understanding of fruit is the winning of souls to Jesus Christ …and that would be whole heartily correct; but, if we examine other scriptures throughout God’s word, we would find this definition of “being fruitful” too limiting. Take for instance Titus 3:14 that reads, “Let our people also learn to maintain good works, to meet urgent needs, that they may not be unfruitful.” So in practical terms, fruit represents good works…a work of thought, attitude or action of ours that God values and that in our doing glorifies Him…the fruit from our lives is how God receives the honor and glory due Him here on earth.

Now, we produce inner fruit when we allow God to make us more like Jesus…to make us more Christ-like in the “fruits of the Spirit” which are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Galatians 5:22…and we bear outward fruit when our labor for the Lord brings Him glory, which would certainly include winning others to the life-saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

So, whether you are raking leaves and doing yard work for the widow down the street or planting a church as a missionary in the deepest jungles of Africa, outward fruit is a result of your inward motive to bring God glory. No matter how small your task for the Lord nor how great its intended outcome, your dreams of serving God will always be too small…so remember this…

WE ARE STILL HERE TO FULFILL GOD’S DREAMS….AND TO BRING HIM GLORY THROUGH A REMARKABLELY LIVED ABUNDANT LIFE.

Just look in your fruit basket and check out how you are doing…..

Until next time, Living for the Savior ….Bearing Much Fruit,

WPQ

 

Poem for the Day:

 If you want to live for Jesus,

Have others see Jesus in you;

Then you should seek to abide in Him

In everything you do.

 

Your life should be an open book…

Each page tells His great story;

And all the things you say and do

Will bring the Father glory.

 

W. Patrick Queen

THE ABIDING IN JESUS SERIES...DAY THREE

Abiding in The Savior…Sailing Life's Stormy Seas.

After yesterday’s thought, I hope you were left with the unequivocal assurance that you belong to Jesus and you have committed yourself to complete surrender. So, now your are ready to take the first step along the road to a fulfilling life in Christ ….ABIDING IN THE SAVIOR!

Before Christ left the Upper Room, he drew that small band of men known as his disciples into a tightly formed circle (my conjecture) and began to share with them his dying words. He spoke gently, but firmly to them, as he continued to teach them and to prepare them for what the next hours and days would bring. He told them in John 15. “ I am the true Vine and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit he takes away and every branch that bears fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Abide in me as I abide in you. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15: 1-2, 4a, 5 

Did you catch all that? Do you hear the words of your Savior just hours before he began his journey to the cross of Calvary? Do you fully understand all that he is trying to tell each of us as He prepares us for what lies ahead?

I believe I can best illustrate what Jesus was saying by sharing a little of my history regarding my service in the US Navy…and some interesting parallels that will help us understand this concept of abiding. Now, I was stationed aboard an old tin can destroyer, USS Strong DD-758, a World War II relic, if ever there was one. Our ship was tethered to the pier in our home port of Charleston, SC when it wasn’t in route overseas for a Mediterranean cruise or sailing about the Gulf of Mexico or the Atlantic Ocean. I learned early as a seaman in the deck force that the ship needed to be in the water to do the most good…to perform its duties and function as a member of the Sixth Fleet. I also learned that though it was good for the ship to be in the water, it was extremely BAD for the water to get into the ship.

The ship had to abide in the water or it was just a large chunk of metal that had little value…it could not fulfill its true mission as a naval vessel unless it was in the water; however, it made for a very bad situation if the water got into the ship. Now in this example, the water is two very distinct things….it is Jesus and it is the World. For each of us to reach our highest and greatest potential, we need to be like the ship and abide in the water…Jesus. If we are taken out of the water, we will be of little value; not much more than a big pile of flesh and bones, waiting for the undertaker. In the water of Jesus, we are free to sail far and wide as we accomplish the things that we were created to do; but, in the water as the World, we face serious problems if we let the world inside of us.

Trust me, you do not want to be in the middle of the ocean and hear the command to “abandon ship”….the only place you have to go is into the water…and many a sailor has drowned at sea when they left the comforts of their vessel for the dark waters of a raging storm.

So how do we keep the water out of us, yet sail unfettered in this world in which we live…we abide in Jesus and we do as he taught his disciples….GUARD YOUR HEART!

Dr. Bruce Wilkinson’s book, SECRETS OF THE VINE, offers some helpful insights to help us understand how we can guard our hearts from the drowning effects of the water of the world…so, come back tomorrow and we will uncover these wonderful principles together.

Sailing in the loving waters of my Savior,

WPQ

 

Poem for the Day:

If upon life's seas your tossed

And water gets in the boat…

Abide in Jesus, just trust in Him

And you will stay afloat.

Don't put your faith in things you see

Or trust in your own power.

Life goes best when we abide in Him

Each day and every hour.

 

WPQ©March 2018

 

THE ABIDING IN JESUS SERIES- DAY TWO

Surrender to the Savior

On my last writing, I posed the question, “ How does one go about abiding in the Lord” and how do we accomplish staying connected to “The Vine” in the tumultuous days in which we live? However, the better question to begin with is how do we know that we are indeed a “part of the Vine”

In scripture, we find my favorite story of the little man known as Zacchaeus in Luke 19, verses 1-11. Here, we see the total transformation of this tax collector as Jesus calls him down from his lofty perch and makes him his host for the evening meal. The Pharisees and others grumble in contention that Jesus would have anything to do with such a sinner…. and Christ’s simple response, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he is also a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost!” But notice in the verses just before Christ’s declaration of his life’s mission, Zacchaeus says, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will repay it fourfold.” It is in this declaration of this little man that we see a new heart born, filled with the love of God. It is that transformation that seals the deal and ushers Zacchaeus into a new relationship with the Lord of heaven and earth.

And the same must be true for you and me; before we can seek …before we can be offered  salvation…we must SURRENDER TO THE SAVIOR!!!! If we TRULY want to abide in the Son, we must first surrender our will to him…life can no longer revolve around what you or I want …it must revolve, evolve and involve the statement that Christ made on the doorstep of the home of this horrid little man that everyone despised…. WE MUST SURRENDER TO HIM so that we can seek and save those that are lost through the power, guidance and conviction of the Holy Spirit!

Zacchaeus provides the perfect role model as he demonstrated submission to Jesus; he gave half of his wealth to the poor and sought to right the wrongs of his past. In other words, he repented and sought to live a new and better life. The same holds true for you and me. If we confess to belong to Jesus and truly seek to abide in Him, we cannot cling to our “old” ways, habits, shortcomings and idiosyncrasies…we must repent and refurbish the old life with the new indwelling of the Holy Spirit that is vital to anyone that wants to abide in Jesus.

So, today cast aside all the things that would keep you from complete surrender to Christ and begin ANEW in the freshness of the Savior…. listen for His voice, sing a new song, read His word and know that wherever you go, HE GOES…. so choose wisely!

Jesus came to seek and to save and if you will surrender your will to Him in a new and resolute way, you will be taking the first step to a new realm of personal intimacy with Jesus…. the life lived in abiding joy, peace and eternal fulfillment. Come back tomorrow as we continue to learn how to draw close to Him…

Living in surrender…seeking the lost for the Savior,

WPQ

 

Poem for the Day:

You may attempt to persuade another

To change their point of view;

But nothing speaks more plainly than

What Christ has done in you.

So if another’s lifestyle

You are hoping to rearrange....

You must testify how the Father’s love

Can make an everlasting change.

So seek to live a godly life;

Be a Beacon in the darkest night.

For those who call Jesus... LORD,

Will be His Salt & Light!

 

WPQ© March 2018

THE ABIDING IN HIM SERIES...DAY ONE

When the World Puts the Squeeze On….

We have all heard the old adage, “When the world hands you lemons, make lemonade!” This seems to be a strong statement of how we are to react when things don’t seem to go our way; however, I have a question that comes from a different vantage point that I would like for us to consider.

“What comes out of you when the world puts the squeeze on?” is a question that begs for an answer with a biblical bent. Now, we all know that if you squeeze fresh oranges, you get orange juice….with those little bits of pulp. If you squeeze lemons, you do indeed get the first ingredient of lemonade….LEMON JUICE. Grapes…grape juice! Apples….apple juice! Pomegranates….well, you get my drift!

But, what about when the world squeezes you and me….what kind of “juice” comes out? As Christians, we are to bear the “Fruits” of the Spirit and according to the passage in Galatians 5:22-23 that reads, “ But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”

So when the pressures of life seem to be bearing down on you and the squeeze is on…. what “juice” comes out of you? Do you rejoice with a fellow employee that gets the promotion you wanted or do you belittle their worth with unkind words that reflect your attitude of “sour grapes”? Do you show kindness and patience when a rude driver cuts you off in traffic or do you fill the air with words that aren’t fit for use at church? Whatever we do …wherever we go…. whatever we say…we should reflect the love and compassion of our Savior so that when the world applies pressure to our often tenuous situation …what is squeezed out of our mouth is characterized by His love, His grace and His mercy.

But how can we be sure that what comes out of us in times of intense pressure will be the fruit of the Spirit…. the simple answer is this…. we must abide in Him! Jesus told his disciples and us, on the night before his crucifixion, that we could do NOTHING without Him…that all of our hopes to accomplish anything for Him would meet failure …unless WE ABIDE IN HIM.

So no matter how we try to survive the real and on-going pressures of this world, we will fail… and what comes out of us WILL NOT be pleasing to our Heavenly Father, unless we learn to abide in the person of Jesus Christ.

If you’re not sure how to pull this off, yet you desperately want to have the fruits of the Spirit flowing from you when the world applies its devastating pressure; follow along over the next few days as we examine (from the Scriptures) how to abide in Jesus.

Abiding in Him…Enjoying the pressure,

WPQ

 

Poem for the Day:

Father, it is through your Spirit

We are filled with your love and power.

Please make us more like Jesus

Each day and every hour.

 

Teach us how to walk in faith

So that when the world presses in;

We will faithfully follow you

And stay far away from sin.

 

Keep us safe in your loving hands

Let no harm come our way!

But if it does, may this we know....

Your love is sufficient for us today.

 

WPQ© March 2018

 

 

 

How to Live Confidently- Last Day of the Series

For the past few days, we have focused on answering the question, “How can we live confidently in a chaotic world?” The scripture has taught us that we can live confidently if we follow the 5 “C’s”…we must remember that God is in CONTROL and in CHARGE as we surrender to his will….believe that God is COMPASSIONATE and his love sustains us through all of life’s calamities….find solace as we experience that God is CALM and has never been caught unaware….take heart in the knowledge that God is CONSISTENT and is the same for each of us; past, present and future.

But most of all, I believe we can, as the children of God, live confidently because of our Savior’s COMMITMENT…His unfailing promise to love us unconditionally and eternally. As always, Jesus’ own words say it best; “Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, you may be also.” John 14:1-3 ESV

Jesus could not bear the thought of living without you and me…so even though He would have to return to Heaven after his glorious resurrection, He shared with his disciples (and us) on that fateful night that HE WAS COMING BACK!!!!  Yes, Jesus committed his life to the Father’s will and to his own personal destruction….and in his last act of commitment found in Acts 1:9-11, we read…

“And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold two men stood by them in white robes and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Jesus has promised …has made the commitment …to come back and get those of us who are called by his name…and Jesus never lies!!!

There is, however, even more proof that Jesus is coming back …just as He promised …in the story that follows…the story of THE FOLDED NAPKIN….

At the tomb of Jesus, we see John out race Peter and arrive at the grave site first. He peers in, but does not enter. Then, Simon Peter arrives, enters and sees the grave clothes lying there; but the napkin that covered our Savior’s face was not with the grave clothes; rather, it was neatly folded and resting in a place by itself. The natural question was,

Why did Jesus fold the napkin?

The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes. The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded, and was placed at the head of that stony coffin.

Is that important? Absolutely! Is it really significant? Yes! In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded napkin had to-do with the Master and Servant…and every Jewish boy knew this tradition.

When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. The table was furnished perfectly with everything in exactly the right place so the Master would be pleased; then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating. The servant would dare not touch the table until he was sure that the master was finished. Then, if the master was done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, clean his beard and then, he would wad up the napkin and toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded-up or unfolded napkin meant, “I’M DONE!”  But, if the master got up from the table, folded his napkin and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because.....

The folded napkin meant....I’M COMING BACK!!!!!

Praise God in Heaven…..He’s Coming Back to Redeem His Own.

I trust that today this little story holds great significance for you because you know Jesus as your personal Savior. He promised ….he has made a holy commitment to come back and take us to be with him. Even in His resurrection moment, He confirmed by the folded napkin His promise that HE IS COMING BACK...and I, for one, can’t wait!

Clinging to the Hope …Living Confidently in a Chaotic World,

 WPQ

 

Poem for the day...

Jesus left this earthly orb

Into the skies He did rise;

Right before the ones He loved

Into the morning skies.

 

And as they stood there looking

Unsure of what to do?

Two men in white said to them,

"One day He's coming back for you!"

 

So if you call on Jesus’ name

Then believe this simple fact.

He has gone to prepare a place for us;

But soon, HE’S COMING BACK!

 

WPQ © MAY 2018

How to Living Confidently – Day 4

Continuing the Series ..How to Live Confidently 

If you were watching much TV in the last few months of 2022, your optical and sensory receptors were constantly bombarded with political ads …ads from would-be, wannabe politicians that would promise anything in hopes of securing your vote.

Many have promised lower taxes, reduced spending, end of “pork” projects, etc., etc, and etc. They have collectively promised anything and everything that they believed the majority wanted to hear …but now it is the time where “the rubber meets the road’. How many of our newly elected officials will actually carry out and consistently vote the voice of their constituents … a strong voice so loudly heard in these mid-term elections? I dare say there will only be a handful that will be consistent in following the will of the people…for unfortunately; men and women alike fail miserably when it comes to being consistent in our words and deeds.

But, praise be to God that He is CONSISTENT…and because He is, we can live with great confidence in these chaotic times….FOR OUR GOD KEEPS HIS WORD IN ALL THINGS.

In Hebrews, the 13^th chapter, we read: “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me!” For Jesus is the same YESTERDAY and TODAY and FOREVER.”  (Verses 5-6, 8)

Our Savior is faithful and he is consistently all that we need to endure the slings and arrows of our adversaries. In fact, in the entire ministry of Jesus, he preached but one thing and one thing only …”I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE. No man comes to the Father except through me.” John 14: 6

You can’t be much more consistent than that!!!!!!!! One message, one cross, one sinless man’s blood shed for the sins of all mankind….and one and only one way to the Father. Yes, in all of the days that Jesus walked upon and among His creations, He was the perfect model of consistency. In miracle after miracle, we see that Jesus always arrived seldom early …never late …but always RIGHT ON TIME… so that God would receive the glory and the son of Man would be lifted up and held in high esteem.

Our God is CONSISTENT….the same for you and me and all those that call upon his name…and He is the same yesterday, today, tomorrow and forever. You can ALWAYS count on God to be there for you, even if all others have deserted you and have run for the hills. God will be at your side to lean upon …in front of you as your guide…and behind you as your rear guard…and if the journey is too great, then He will carry you to a place of rest and completion greater than you can think or imagine.

I could recount story upon story upon story of how God has worked consistently in my life and the life of my family for these many years…and I’m sure, if you took just a moment, many examples of his faithfulness and consistent love would flood your memory too….so why not do that today? Take that moment and think on those times that your Lord and Savior has been consistent in your life. Then, you will be able to faithfully answer the question that seems to plague us all….

Why should I fear what can man do to me?

 Living confidently in my Consistent Savior,

WPQ

Poem for the day:

The Father seeks to give to us

The strength to face each day;

And we can live in confidence

As we seek to walk His way.

 

For when we surrender to His will

His Spirit will fill our life;

Helping us on every side

To defeat our times of strife.

 

Yes, to live our lives consistently

That should be our prayer;

For Jesus’ love will never change

As with others we seek to share.

 

WPQ© Oct 2016