Well, do you have a direction in life? Got any open roads and not know where to go? Got not enough roads or no lines on a really wide road???  Ever just get lost in your own shuffle of choices in life? Would you wish for more choices or less? Do you wonder if each step is the right one? Are you stuck and scared to even move? Are there wrong steps? Yes. Are there many right steps? Yes. What about side steps when you almost go the wrong way? Yes you can recover. Do you have to figure out all the steps ahead of time? No. Is there someone to help you step? Yes. Is there someone who will even make a path? Yes.

Jesus asks us to abide in Him. “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.” John 15:4

We are free to live freely but isn’t it going to be much better and more fruitful should we choose to live ABIDING in Him? Once you choose to serve Him it seems that you wouldn’t take any other choice. You could say it is not freedom, and it is not, but it IS Kingdom-living and that’s really a lot! Live in Him and He will provide.

When you get to the ice cream place, you have choices, all are probably pretty good. Do you have to put all your energy into the choice? No. Life is more complicated than ice cream, but choosing what to do should not be so complicated. When we abide in Him, we have a range of choices too. But this abiding and Kingdom talk is not intended to be about material things. More about those life choices, those roads to take – and those choices in life, so very important, about using the abilities HE has given us. Why are we given abilities? Because we are made in His image, all with fruit to bear.  Fruit needs STRONG branches first. Weak branches not only will drop fruit, but will be damaged themselves. SO WE MUST GROW AND GROW STRONG! Are we placed in challenging life instances from where we can GROW? That is the point. We should all pray for strength. Even if you are placed “in kind” with comfortable surroundings, you can still grow – spiritually – you can be challenged to use your talents – challenged to reach people for the betterment of mankind. Yes, even the plants are in places suitable for bearing fruit and seeds “according to their kinds”. Therefore we must be in even better circumstances since we especially have the ability to bear not our fruit, but HIS FRUIT – which He will place on us – then we can grow.

In Genesis, God planned everything to thrive “according to their kind”. For the people, He allowed eating from any tree except the one He said not to, which meant they were free to choose amongst so many good things already placed. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. Genesis 1:12.  This meant they bore what they were expected to bear….  

Genesis 2:15-17 – The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

I listened to an old recording of band practice with my first band leader, my dear friend Anthony, for a new beautiful song he had just written. We were learning our parts which were up to us to develop – and Anthony, even in such few words that I already understood,  said: “There’s all kind of room in there to do (trails off)… you know what I am saying?” (“Yeah“) “Just find your spot and do something.”  That’s what I needed to hear today and always: “Just find your spot and do something” – That is what the Lord is allowing us to do – have freedom within limits of His goodness – and do things for Him, including just being us. What we do is not always but sometimes a direct command and not always but sometimes a path that we ourselves have to figure it out. Either way, we have to “find our spot”, abide in Him, listen, be His, and do something. Another song I was being taught, Anthony said “Don’t rush it”. TRUE!. In all ways, He has given us the Spirit to guide us. We are not alone.

That something of doing something always starts with loving God, when we abide in Him, we will be free to live. If we are free to eat from any tree, and there are multiple, then we are free to choose so many things. Surely we first should choose to serve the Lord and not worry about how. Simply abide, find your spot, and do something.

Amen

PS – this leaf all colorful for the fall – the green was pulled back as it reveals all the extra pigments that were doing so much without us knowing. how colorful and beautiful we all are inside – God knows – God knows you are all beautiful.

Amen Amen