You can change by abiding in Jesus

Is change possible?

Do you have a difficult habit or tendency that feels IMPOSSIBLE change? Instead of struggling to try and change it in your own strength, what would it be like for you if help was available? Watch this week’s Points to Ponder to hear more.

I was reading a devotional, and it challenged my thinking about how change is possible. Change starts starts with how we “abide in Christ.”

What does “abide in Christ” mean?

Let’s look in the Bible at the book of John, Chapter 15: 4-5. Here, Jesus says: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” (NKJV)

Do you have a difficult habit or something destructive in your life? When you try to tackle it, does it feel IMPOSSIBLE? What would you say if I told you that it may be impossible in your own strength? Instead, I am challenging you to ask: What might change when you abide in Christ?

Abide in Jesus

In the Christian faith, Jesus tells us in John 15 to “Abide in Him.” Abiding is about consistently showing up expecting to see and experience God’s power, promises, and peace. It’s His effort that brings about mighty, fruitful change in your life. Allowing Him to live in you (and you in Him) produces abundant results that you’d never experience by striving on your own. Trust Him to do a good work in you; He will be faithful to complete it.

When you abide in Christ, you have HIS strength to help you overcome whatever it is you are facing. His strength is exactly what you need. He tells us that if we abide in Him, we can bear much fruit. What would happen if you allow HIM to create the change in you?

Points to Ponder

• What success have you had by relying only on your own strength?
• How can Jesus abiding in you make change possible?