21 Days of Prayer for the World: Day 10

November 1st, 2023
by Bre Haglund

Wednesday, November 1
DAY 10: ABIDE

SCRIPTURE
“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

My daughter was about four years old when she came home from a Bible study we attended singing the familiar hymn lyrics, “trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” She stumbled over the T as she sang and stopped, tried again and emphasized TRUST and obey. She made a T with her hands and an O after that and smiled proudly as she finished. Little did she know at the time that she was singing one of my favorite songs from my childhood. My family would gather around each night to sing and pray together before bed, and I would often request that song.

As I smiled at the thought of that song, I looked up the lyrics to refresh my memory—and as I read, I stopped when I saw this line:

Not a doubt or a fear, not a sigh or a tear

Can abide while we trust and obey.

I reread them. Doubt. Fear. Sighs. Tears. We live in days that are full of one, if not all these things. At times, we struggle to see beyond the hard and the heaviness that goes on in each of our worlds and the world at large. Everywhere we turn, it seems there is something to fear, something that can make us doubt and weigh heavy on our hearts and minds. But then the word: abide. Abide means to remain. When we remain in Him, the doubt and the fear cannot. When we actively abide in Him, the things of this world, while real and present, cannot abide in our hearts and minds when we fix our eyes on Jesus. How do we do that? We trust and obey.

We see in John 15 where Jesus tells the disciples to “abide in me”. He says we can’t bear fruit if we don’t abide, and apart from Him we can do nothing. So He tells us: abide.

The circumstances may not change, the hard may not go away, but these will become second to Jesus when we allow our hearts and minds to abide in Him, not the things of this world. We have a choice where to fix our eyes—the eyes of our hearts—and He is inviting us to abide in Him.

As we begin another day, no matter the uncertainties we face, the fears or doubts that threaten to creep in, let’s pray that we simply abide in Him today.

PRAYER
Lord, today we come to you knowing there are doubts and fears that fight for our hearts’ attention. We know there are people, places, and things that cause us to grieve and sigh. Lord, we long to be with you, for you to make it right; yet we trust your timing. But in the in between, You invite us to abide with You, and today we choose to trust Your word, trust Your sovereign hand, and trust Your character. You are faithful, unchanging, and You tell us to simply abide in You. So help us to obey those words in John 15 today, to hold fast and remain in You. Amen.May they feel you near them, knowing you are faithful and trustworthy. Amen.

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