You Are More Than You’ve Been Told: Unlock a Fresh Way to Live Through the Rhythms of JesusSample

DAY 3: A Trellis Life

A phone call with a friend changed my life.

I wondered, “How do we literally reconnect with God? How do we practically depend on His power?”

I was in the midst of that weary season, and needed a practical answer. Growing up, I heard it said that the way to live your life with the power of God moving in you was to abide in Christ. It comes from John 15. Jesus says, “I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear great fruit. Without Me, you will accomplish nothing.” (John 15:5)

Simple enough, right?

Right. Except for me, “abide in Christ'' slowly became a spiritual and delightful but empty phrase. I did not understand how to do it practically, so I often dismissed it. But Jesus said this was the key to the breakthrough we want, and the life we long for. So there must be a practical way to do it.

I called my friend who has spent years studying vineyards, soil, growth patterns, and weather systems all over the world. I wanted to know how branches stayed connected to vines in storms, through intense weather, and if there was anything else she could teach me about the relationship between the two.

She told me, “Technically, yes, branches just need to be connected to the vine to live, but they really need a trellis. They need a structure to help them stay connected to the vine, hold them up, and grow and flourish to their full potential.”

She explained how a trellis is a wooden or metal structure or framework that is mainly used as a support for fruit trees or plants. It made sense.

Then I asked, “Wait, without a trellis, can the branches still live if they are only connected to the vine?”

She responded, “Yes. All that the branches need to survive is to be connected to the vine. However, though the branches can still live without a structure, without it, they will constantly be weighed down. They will be carrying weight they weren’t meant to carry. And they’ll be fighting an uphill battle they don’t have to fight.”

Wow.

Is anyone else feeling weighed down today?

• Perhaps you want breakthrough, healing, and a flourishing life, but you feel
• weighed down from the expectations of others,
• weighed down from the demands at both home and work,
• weighed down from your feelings of failure,
• weighed down with fear of the future, and uncertainty of what’s to come.

It is possible that you and I are carrying weights we were never meant to carry. It is possible you and I are fighting an uphill battle we don’t have to fight.

The trellis—the structure—helps carry the weight so the branches can stay connected to the source. If branches carry too much on their own, they will eventually break apart—and break off from the vine.

Jesus is the Source of life. A structure helps us stay connected to our Source. Simply put, the structure helps us to… abide.

Breakthrough is possible. How?

Through full dependence on God. How?

Through abiding in Christ. How?

Through choosing and committing to a structure of habits that keep us connected to Jesus.

What we are talking about is a practical, personal, tangible plan to live the lives we were created to live. We are talking about a trellis–a structure of spiritual disciplines, to help us live lighter and freer, and truly connect with God. This will look like implementing rhythms in our daily, weekly, and monthly schedules. And we are going to take these rhythms from Jesus himself.

First, a word of caution and a truth that cannot be overstressed–Spiritual habits and practices are not what save you and are not what give you life. These practices are not the point. They are all a means to an end. The goal is to be close to Jesus. The point is to be connected to Jesus. The practices only serve the purpose of abiding in Jesus.

There is no power in the structure. There is only power in the Source. The structure’s only function is to help you stay connected to the Source, Jesus Himself.

Reconnecting with Jesus Christ, our Savior. Knowing Jesus for real. That’s the whole point.

Prayer

Jesus, I want to know You for real. I have felt disconnected from You and from myself. I can see the places in my life where I have felt weighed down, and I need a new structure. Help me see the practical ways to reconnect. Help me build out a new structure, and begin a new rhythm to connect with You in a fresh way. I am ready. Amen.