These past several weeks my husband and I have been spending every non-working moment trying to get to the next step in our remodel project. We’ve hustled after work and over weekends on the what-we-never-thought-would-end-project…..walls. Specifically mudding, sanding, and texturing the sheetrock on the walls we built. All with a driven purpose to be completely done with that segment no later than this past Saturday. Why? One word: abide.
You see, our son and his family, along with our daughter and her mother-in-law, and two more family members will visit us within an eleven-day time span. We are over-the-moon excited to have so many family members with us, but we needed to have space for many of them to stay with us – the space that is currently under construction. Additionally, we wanted to spend time with them so we knew we couldn’t be distracted by construction mode when they arrived. We needed to plan. We needed to prepare. We needed to get it done!
The whole point of our breakneck running was actually to be able to stop. To stop and enjoy the people we love so much. To spend time in their presence. To talk. To eat together. To go on walks together. To abide. Things that are worth the work – worth burning the candle at both ends for a while.
The Old Testament Hebrew word, yashab, encompasses the interpersonal relationships connected to abide. Things like: “habitations, inhabit, make to keep house, and marrying.” While the New Testament word, meno, speaks more to the concept of staying: “dwell, be present, and remain.” Both these root words encompass what Larry and I have been trying to accomplish – literally preparing a place to linger for the purpose of deepening relationships with our loved ones. I was surprised by the level of importance I was aware of these past several weeks. Something in my spirit was recognizing the holiness of the project and I was practically compelled to complete the task.
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
John 15: 1-8
During this time, the Lord also spotlighted the parallel in my choice to abide with him. Abiding is so intentional that it has to be planned and prepared for. I can’t accidentally abide with Jesus. Yes, he is always with me. But my choice to abide with him requires me to prepare my heart, to still my busy mind, and to quiet my spirit. It is a choice that requires preparation. Thankfully, not the same kind of preparation that I’ve been doing with our home! But it can feel like a real stretch to slow myself down in such a fast-paced world – choosing to sit still and quiet myself does not come naturally. Yet, I’ve logged enough life with the Lord to know that He is always prepared to abide with me and is simply waiting for me to choose to do the same. He is always ready to receive me. Choosing to still myself before the Master Gardener will result in the tending, dressing, and pruning process that can only come from his loving hands. And the result is that I am refreshed, restored, and my roots are deepened for a richer harvest.
So here I am again. Asking the Lord to open my eyes to the holy work of preparing to abide – with my family and with my Lord. Asking him to give me strength to complete the preparation, and the discipline to quiet the work when my people arrive. Asking him to dwell with us – in conversation, during celebrations, over meals, in the mundane moments – and do what only he can in us. Asking him to help me reflect the message of love that he so faithfully whispers to us all…
You are adored.
You Are Adored 