Abide and Bear Fruit

“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

All Christian parents want their children to grow up and be successful and happy.  Their prayer is that they will be able to achieve all their goals and dreams.  However, the most important thing that we should earnestly want for our children, above all else, is to know the Lord as their best friend and follow Him, trusting in Him with all their “heart, soul, mind, and strength” Proverbs 3:5-6. However, for our children to do this.  It starts with us.  We must abide in Christ surrendering our lives to Him and model it for our children.

I love how Jesus uses everyday, ordinary things to help us understand how we are to live our everyday, ordinary lives.  Close your eyes and picture a beautiful vineyard of grapes.  Look at the weaving of the vines and the numerous branches coming off the vine.  Now, picture the gardener tending the vineyard.  The vine is Jesus, and we are the branches.  God is the gardener.  This is a perfect picture of the relationship that God seeks with each of us, as well as for our families.  It is easier said than done in this world.  It is much easier to be conformed to the world, a place where self-interest and the “do what makes you happy” ideology of life is prevalent.

As Christian parents, however, our children and youth are depending on us.  We must abide in him.  Why?  Because when we don’t, we will conform to the world and use the world as our standard for living and parenting.  You see, how we operate, what we do in our everyday, ordinary lives matter.  Our children and our teenagers are watching us.  I remember when my twins were in elementary school, and I was reminding them to do their quiet time.  They were at the age that they could read, and we had purchased devotional books for them to use to develop an individual time with God.  On this evening, one of the twins asked why they had to do a quiet time, as if we had not ingrained it in their heads since they were born.  Then ensued a conversation in which I was told they had not ever seen me doing my quiet time.  Bam!  That one hit me over the head!  Remember when I said we made lots of mistakes?  Yep!  This was a big one.  You see, I had always done my studying at night when they were in bed or during the day at my workplace.  They had never seen me doing my own quiet time.  They had only experienced me teaching them and guiding them through daily life, but these were merely words.  Our kids are watching, and they are listening.  From the littlest ones to the older ones, who are itching to be independent and make their own decisions, we must commit ourselves to abiding in God.  He is the only answer, and when we do not make time to be with Him, whether our children see it or not, we are missing the plan that God has for us as parents.  They are a precious gift.  The only way for us to guide them is to first be in a relationship with God and walking daily with Him.  In addition, it is important for us so that we can then effectively guide them, teach them, and show them that He is “the way, the truth, and the life.” John 14:6

The bottom line is simple.  If you want your children to grow up loving the Bible, you have must love the Bible.  If you want your children reading the Bible, you must be reading and studying the Bible.  If you want your children to use the Bible as their source of truth, then you must look to it for truth when approaching questions and problems when parenting.  Parents must weave scripture into everyday living and parenting.  If you want your children not to be conformed to the world, it starts with you.  If God is not first in your life, your relationships, and in all your decisions, or if the things of this world are your idol, then your children will also conform to this world.  We must show our children and teenagers what it means to be a follower of Christ.  Words mater, but actions matter more.   1 John 3:18 says, “Let us not love with words or speech, but with actions and in truth.”

We made a lot of mistakes along the way.  However, the journey was also an important part of the process in our family, and it still is today, even with children who are young adults.  However, when you, as parents, abide and put Him first in all things, even the smallest, you will bear much fruit, even among the mistakes.  The cool part is that you don’t have to do it alone.  It is through the power of the Holy Spirit.  He will guide and direct you, if you only “remain in Him.”  Then, you will bear fruit, and more branches will spring up.  Then, because you have taught your children what it means to remain in Him, they will bear fruit as well!