joy Archives - Daily Thoughts about God

“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.” John 15:5

The wooden wisteria frame at the back of our yard provides the perfect arms to hold hanging baskets. “I suppose you’ve already seen what I need to confess,” my husband smiled, pointing to a fuchsia with brown, withered leaves and blooms that hung lifeless on the limp branch.

Bill had inadvertently stepped on and snapped off the strand while the baskets were down for feeding. He jammed the detached piece into the soil and hoped for the best. Initially the stem blended into the flowering masses and passed for a living, viable part of the plant. It didn’t take long though for the shriveling to begin. Only being near the source of life did not provide the nutrients necessary to flourish and bloom.

And so it is with us and Jesus. We can attend church and plant ourselves near the Source but if we aren’t directly attached to Him, we also wither. As I look at my basket, I’m reminded how many individual strands and blooms come together to make the beautiful whole. When each member of the body of Christ – the church – draws deeply from an individual connection with Him, we can come together and thrive.

Are you connected to the Vine and plugged into a body of believers?

Father, please nourish my soul that I may be a thriving member of Your body and faithfully serve You and others. Amen.

Take a Step: Ask God to show you one way you can serve someone today.

by Shelaine Strom
Used by Permission

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2).

While in church one Sunday morning, I was introduced to the song, Above All written by Lenny LeBlanc and Paul Baloche. I cried when we sang the chorus. In fact, for years, I could not sing the song without being deeply moved. I still can’t.

Crucified laid behind a stone
You lived to die rejected and alone
Like a rose trampled on the ground
You took the fall and thought of me
Above all!

Just to imagine Christ, my comforter and best friend, crucified, rejected and alone, touched me deeply. I myself was going through a time of rejection and felt very alone, so the words of the song touched me deeply – realizing that Christ must have had some of the same feelings.

The sentence, “Like a rose, trampled on the ground”, gave me such a clear word picture of what Jesus went through for us.

One of the names of Jesus is “Rose of Sharon.”

One week, my husband and I spoke at a Day of Prayer gathering. We sang the song again and the Lord gave me a new insight. When a rose is crushed or trampled, it offers a very sweet fragrance. Jesus is a sweet smelling fragrance. The Apostle Paul tells us that we are a sweet smelling fragrance to those who believe. I wondered what kind of fragrance we as Christians offer when we have been rejected and feel alone – when we have been crushed and trampled on. Mine is not always sweet. How about you?

Lord Jesus, thank You! Thank You that although You are above all powers and kings, nature and all created things, You were trampled to the ground – for us. Yet being crushed, You were like a sweet smelling rose. You did it all for us. We ask that today and everyday, when we feel crushed and rejected, a fragrance of sweet smelling rose would flow from our spirit so people would be drawn to You. Amen

by Katherine Kehler
Used by Permission

When I was in my thirties, I believed in God—was a Christian, was a churchgoer, but I did not know that I was created to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. I learned that to experience a full and meaningful life, I needed to yield the control of my life to God (I had never done that), then I could experience His love and power moment by moment. This is the prayer I prayed. You can too!

“Dear Father, I need You. I acknowledge that I have been directing my own life and that, as a result, I have sinned against You. I thank You that You have forgiven my sins through Christ’s death on the cross for me. I now invite Christ to again take His place on the throne of my life. Fill me with the Holy Spirit as You commanded me to be filled, and as You promised in Your Word that You would do if I asked in faith. I now thank You for directing my life and for filling me with the Holy Spirit.”

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? If so, bow in prayer and trust God to fill you with the Holy Spirit right now.

Thrive and Serve

“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.” John 15:5

FURTHER READING

A Trampled Rose

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2).

The sentence, “Like a rose, trampled on the ground”, gave me such a clear word picture of what Jesus went through for us.

FURTHER READING

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Thrive and Serve

“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.” John 15:5

FURTHER READING

A Trampled Rose

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2).

The sentence, “Like a rose, trampled on the ground”, gave me such a clear word picture of what Jesus went through for us.

FURTHER READING