I’ve been reflecting on John 15:9-11 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”
Oh Jesus! How wonderful He is! His desire for us is His love and His joy! It’s really so simple… abide in His love, keep His commandments, and our joy will be full! We are the ones that make this journey complicated. Jesus spells it out plain and simple.
It’s that tricky thing called “desire” that gets in the way! When our desires are “of the world” that’s when we get off course and need a redirect. You know what I’m talking about, right? People refer to it as pruning. I’ve been reflecting on that as well.
Why does pruning have to hurt? It really doesn’t. If we just stop clinging to that desire. If we truly release it and let it go. “Let go, let God”.
But what happened to me recently with pruning is I was afraid to “let go”. I allowed the worldly thing to have power. I believed (bought the lie) that I needed it, that I would miss it… AND tried to justify that I needed it for my spiritual journey ~ even though Spirit was clearly guiding me away from it.
The battle is ours. And it doesn’t have to be. Had I not lived in fear of giving up this worldly thing, had I surrendered to my guidance sooner, had a trusted and let go sooner ~ the pruning wouldn’t have hurt.
But the beauty of the journey is we grow! We learn from experience. We see the bigger picture and choose wiser the next time… and let go sooner the next time.
The other joy is… “suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” Romans 5:3-5
And here we are… back to LOVE! God’s love has been poured into our hearts! Jesus’ desire for you is love and joy!
Blessings to you on this wonderful journey called life!
Patti Rey