Abide as an Action Verb
At Proven Results, we love the concept of abiding in Jesus. We’ve based much of our business and the material for our mentoring program around this idea.
If you’re not familiar with Jesus’ teachings on the importance of abiding, I encourage you to read John 15. This section of Scripture is a part of Jesus’ Farewell Discourse, the speech He gives to His disciples the night before He goes to the cross. We only read these words in the Gospel of John (as opposed to many of the stories from Jesus’ life that show up in multiple Gospel accounts), and these reflections give us a unique and intimate window into what Jesus was most concerned about communicating to His disciples before His death.
We like to say that abiding is an action verb, and we mean this differently than what you might think about if you were talking about action verbs in a grammatical sense. Personally, I’m less interested in whether we’re talking correctly about parts of speech and more concerned with how we think about the relationship between abiding in Jesus and living the life God has called us to live.
With this in mind, when we say that abiding is an action verb, we’re saying that it won’t happen passively or accidentally. I once heard a well-known speaker and author say that you will never look up and find yourself doing something positive or productive unintentionally. Abiding in Jesus is similar. Obeying this command has the power to change your life, but it’s something that requires proactivity and a level of sacrifice.
Let’s take a look at a brief excerpt from our upcoming workbook (which we introduced in last week’s blog entry) that explains the idea of abiding in action:
“Jesus’ instruction to abide in Him is at the core of the work you’ll do in this program. The Abide Factor is a five-step framework for spiritual growth and transformation that we’ll cover in detail in the coming weeks:
A - Abide. We turn our attention to Jesus by looking to him as our source and guide.
B - Bless. We bless God through obeying his Word and keeping his commandments.
I - Incline. We listen to God’s word and turn our hearts toward His values and principles. We train ourselves to hear God’s voice and respond when He calls.
D - Dwell. We stay close to God by remaining mindful of His presence in our daily lives.
E - Everything. As Jesus commands us in Matthew 22:37-38, we love God with everything we have.
When you think about what this framework may look like in action, what comes to mind? What evidence would you need to see in your own life to know if you are abiding in Christ? Be as specific as possible.”
As you can see, each component of the Abide factor requires continued commitment and consistent action. Living this way can transform your life, as we’ve seen take place for many time and time again. However, it will only happen if you’re willing to change your current behaviors and allow the Holy Spirit to transform your heart and mind. We believe this workbook will offer a road map to help facilitate this ongoing process, and we can’t wait to share it with you.
We expect this workbook to be ready within the next few months. In the meantime, if you’re not currently meeting with a mentor but would like more information, use this link to schedule a free discovery call.
