The Official Writing Challenge
BACK TO
CHALLENGE
MAIN
INSTRUCTIONS
how it works
submission rules
guidelines for
choosing a level
ENTRIES
submit your entry
read current entries
read past entries
challenge winners
Our Daily Devotional HERE
Place it on your site or
receive it daily by email.


TRUST JESUS TODAY

  • Share
  • how it works
  • Submit
Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: Vines (11/21/05)
Do You Know the Vine in Which You Abide?

Vines can be very unmanageable plants. I was walking around my house one day, and I noticed a couple of these deceptive looking creatures creeping up along the side of my front door. I decided to take a closer look at these vines; there was no sign of life, just dead leaves. I came to the realization that, in life, there are a couple of different vines. The first vine that springs to mind, of course, is Jesus. This brought the Scripture John 15:5 (KJV) to mind, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit; for without me ye can do nothing.” It really troubled me because everything I saw on the vine was dead! I saw no sign of life whatsoever. Thinking about this situation, I began to consider this:
I see so many people abiding in “vines” that don’t bear fruit. I don’t know about anyone else, but I have a lot of acquaintances, friends and family members, who think they’re abiding in the Vine, but they’re actually abiding in another type of vine - a vine of flesh, a vine of self; these people don’t know Scripture, but they quote Scripture. They know the laws and commandments of God, but they don’t obey. They say they don’t have time to study the Word of God, they don’t have time to get in the presence of God, but they claim to know Him. They know how to say God is good when they get a little cash, a car, a house or a job, but when things go wrong, they can’t bring themselves to offer Him the sacrifice of praise. A lot of these people I just mentioned haven’t even repented and said the sinner’s prayer. They think because they’re parents are saved, they’re automatically saved. Because they attend church and cry and get chills when a powerful message or song is delivered, they think they’re saved.
I wanted to know why this is. It took me a few minutes to figure out an answer to this confounding question. I finally figured out the answer in another Scripture: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman (John 15:1 KJV)”. The term husbandman means a farmer or a Gardner. No wonder they aren’t bringing forth any fruit! There is no husbandman to cultivate their “vines”. I began to think a lot about my own relationship with Jesus. The vine, Jesus, is cared for by God, therefore, anything that abides, or dwells in the Vine is sure to flourish. I’m only recently saved, and to say the least, it’s been a learning experience – a scary, difficult, wonderful and exciting experience, for me to dwell completely in Jesus. I had been independent from a really young age. And finally, at the age of 32, I realized that for all this “independence” I had, I had nothing to show for it. I was doing everything wrong! I wasn’t successful at anything but failing! And one day, I finally put my hands up and said to Jesus, “I surrender”. It’s been a roller coaster ride of successes and failures ever since. Yes, I still fall, I mean, it’s only been six months, but because I am learning to abide in the Vine, I have experienced a couple of very important successes that I could not achieve when I was in the world. Because I am learning to abide in Jesus, the Vine, I am now set apart from gossiping, tale-bearing coworkers. I have learned to endure criticism and back biting; because I have changed, I can’t hang around with the same people anymore. I am now a branch of the Vine, which means he abides in me and I in Him. I have finally learned that without Him I can do nothing!

The world’s definition of a vine is “a plant that supports itself by climbing, twining (twisting around), or creeping along a surface”. I pray that my brothers and sisters know in which vine they abide. We’ve all seen untended vines covering entire houses, trees, bushes, etc. Eventually, they will become so prolific in their growth that they will climb and creep and twist, and eventually, choke the life out of whatever it is, they’re covering.
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
If you died today, are you absolutely certain that you would go to heaven? You can be right now. CLICK HERE

JOIN US at FaithWriters for Free. Grow as a Writer and Spread the Gospel.
This article has been read 754 times
Member Comments
Member
Date
Nina Phillips
11/30/05
I really liked your story-and I loved your conclusion. However, this was really harder to read and to take the beautiful message from because the paragraphs were not double spaced out. Edit this, and it will be wonderful. God bless ya, littlelight
Anita Neuman
11/30/05
Your simple, honest assessment brought tears to my eyes! I almost didn't read this (please break up your paragraphs with extra spaces for ease of readability) but I'm SOOOO glad I did. There is so much great truth in there - I hope it strikes a chord with a lot of people who assume they're saved. Keep writing - you have a great message to share!
Dan Louise Mann
11/30/05
Yours was definitely one of my top picks this week. Kudos!
Jan Ackerson
12/02/05
Written with a voice that makes one want to keep reading. Very approachable. Break into smaller paragraphs, and this will be one of the better devotionals I've seen here.