Sunday, March 29, 2020

March 29, 2020 … Plugged In

Berry Patch Devotions in 2020 - Day 89 

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...   Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from a church worship singing Fruit of the Spirit Song … joyously singing of how Christians need to be filled with the Spirit of God to be fruitful in God’s Kingdom and for His glory.

"Plugged In" To the Real Power

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Highlight Verse[s]: John 15:5 [ESV] ...  5 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. 
… Jesus clearly states that without being connected to Him, we, as His disciples, can do nothing that is fruitful.
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Highlight Passage [context]: John 15:5-8 [ESV] ... USE THIS LINK ...
… Jesus shows His discloses (and us too) that they could only be fruitful in this life if they were (we are) connected to Him by His Spirit.
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Reference Passage : … Proverbs 3:5-6 [ESV] … USE THIS LINK
… We must trust in our Lord completely to be able to follow His way and His will in life.

Reference Passage : … Galatians 5:22-23 [ESV] … 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 
… When we’re truly connected to God’s will and following His way, we will experience and grow in the fruit of His Spirit.

Reference Passage : … Colossians 1:9-11 [ESV] … USE THIS LINK
… God, thru Paul, shows that the only way to be fruitful as Christians and walk in a worthy manner with Christ is to be filled with the knowledge of His way and His will.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Patricia Raybon, uses electronic word picture to illustrate how we must be plugged in to Christ to be able to reflect His power (see photo). … The ODB author wrote: A thrift-store bargain, the lamp seemed perfect for my home office—the right color, size, and price. Back at home, however, when I plugged in the cord, nothing happened. No light. No power. No juice. 
No problem, my husband assured me. “I can fix that. Easy.” As he took the lamp apart, he saw the trouble immediately. The plug wasn’t connected to anything. Without wiring to a source of power, the “perfect” pretty lamp was useless. 

When you meditate on the Scriptures above and reflect on the ODB illustration, I hope all readers understand why I write so often in my morning journal entries (such as this one) as to why you will find me here EVERY MORNING, … starting my day by being “plugged in” to the power I receive from God’s word, which is authored by God’s Spirit. And hence the illustration I’ve chosen in the photo attached.

I realize that I can only reflect God’s power and be fruitful as a disciple of Christ, as He clearly stated in the John 15 passage, if I’m connected to and abiding in my Lord thru His Spirit. And the best way I know to do that each day is to start each morning in prayer and meditation, “plugged in” and focusing on God’s truth (i.e., His word). And I pray that all reading here with me have discovered that truth, as did the Apostle Paul, who, in the reference letters he wrote to the Galatians and Colossians cited above, clearly wanted fellow Christians to find what he had found … and that is the secret to fruitfulness as a disciple of Christ.

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My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for showing me the way to receive and reflect Your power in this life.
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My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray, Lord, that all reading here will join me to get plugged in to the power of our Lord thru His word. Amen

Blogger Note:  Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries.  If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.</ span>

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