Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:4-5
I recently had a chat with my good friend who also happens to be an artist, and I asked her how she sits down and draws all. day. long. She has been faithfully working on her portfolio, drawing and re-drawing the same portraits over and over again. She turns in her work to her mentor, who tells her to keep re-doing it until it is just right. And I am amazed at how she has the stamina to keep going, to keep doing the tedious, unseen work each and every day when there is no immediate reward in sight.
She tells me she does it with God. She invites Him in, and He does it with her, through her. She prays her way through it. When she gets discouraged or stuck she allows Him to help her.
Apart from me you can do nothing.
I can’t stop thinking about that. Here I am, trying to pursue a calling He has put on my heart and gifted me accordingly to do, and I am trying to do it all in my own strength. No wonder I get overwhelmed. No wonder I run out of ideas. No wonder I feel like I have nothing to contribute… because I don’t, at least not in myself. Without Him I have nothing- I come up empty.
The bells go off in my head when my friend tells me where her inspiration comes from. Of course! Of course it has to start with Him! How could I forget that?
I think of my best work (as a writer, a singer, a friend…) and it always comes from a place of deep abiding with the Lord. My best words flow from communion with Him. My most inspired moments are the fruit of constant communication with my Father. He is the life source, the creative source. If He created me, how could I create anything without Him? If I’m not abiding in Him, how can I offer anything to others?
If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.
John 15:6
I don’t want to be a dead, burnt branch. I don’t want to try to produce anything on my own. I can’t produce anything on my own, or at least anything of worth. I want everything that comes out of me to be a result of my life with God. It is my responsibility:
Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power. To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.
Ephesians 3:7-10
If my motive is anything less than to spread His love and hope than I am missing the calling. If it is about me or my own glory, I am missing it. God takes all the credit and all the blame for the fruit He produces through me- I am only his instrument, his vessel.
As I peek into the world of writing and publishing, I can see how easy it is to get distracted and forget why you are doing what you are doing. I can see how you might get lost in platform building and social media and comparison and feel drowned out in a sea of people who are all trying to do the same thing and get noticed.
I can see how easy it is to lose focus. To forget that the words on the page are not the source, but rather the result of a life lived seeking the kingdom first. That the words shared are words earned by faithful living, not haphazardly and desperately written words to impress.
I don’t know where God is leading me with this. But I know that He is good and He is for me, and He wants to use me in any way that I am willing. And I know that He has gifted me with words, not to build myself up, but for the purpose of building up others and His kingdom. So as I continue down this path, I pray that He would continually remind me I am only the branch, and not the vine. And thank goodness for that!
I pray this knowledge would keep my heart humble and ready for the fruit He wants to produce through me, which is so much plumper and sweeter than I could ever imagine.
rhythms of grace 