“Lord if you… I promise I’ll be…” “Lord if you… I won’t… anymore” “Lord if you … I will REMAIN.” How many of us have said this over and over? Just me? You need to repent if you just lied lol! But seriously, far too many times we give God the “if He then we,” empty promises. I’m here today to tell US to cut it out.

Remain defined by google dictionary means to, 1) continue to exist, especially after other similar or related people or things have ceased to exist. 2) stay in the place that one has been occupying. 3) continue to possess a particular quality or fulfill a particular role. In my words, remain means to continue or stay.

One thing I know to be true is that faithfulness is build in trial. When we get sick, we faithfully take medication and START a vitamin regimen (something we should have been doing all along). When we get a report from the doctor that we are over weight and at the brink of xyz disease if we don’t turn it around, we START a workout regimen (something we should have been doing all along). When we hit rock bottom, some of us START reading the Bible until we feel relief (you know what I’m about to say— something we should have been doing all along). We start well in hopes of averting crisis, but we do not remain in the life saving habits we begin.

I notice in my own life that when I am afflicted in my body with some health woe, my prayer life, Bible study time, eating habits, water intake, and overall faithfulness to God is ON POINT. I MAKE time in the crevices of my day to seek Him, love on Him, hear His heart for me, and be laser focused and intentional that my every action aligns to His word. Are you the same way? Well, the moment I get relief, as faithful God always provides, I don’t ghost Him, but girlll, the time starts to escape me and I have to FIND time to be with Him. Bible reading becomes Bible skimming or not reading at all. The Good Book is replaced with Facebook… and, well you get the picture. The issue is that I struggle to remain.

Jesus says in John 15: 1-5, “

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “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.”

Sis, when we don’t remain, we can do nothing. Today, with me, will you chuck the empty promises to the curb and just determine in your heart to be faithful and remain? Let’s remain when we are in lack and in plenty. Let’s remain when we are in sorrow or in joy. Let’s remain we we are in a valley or a mountaintop. Let’s remain when we are sick or well. Let’s remain faithful at all times. Now is not the time for us to take days off of faithfulness. The devil never takes a day off!

Practically, let’s put down the phones a bit more, pick up the Word a bit more. Let’s unplug from the distractions, and truly connect with the Lover of our soul. Today, I choose to remain. What will you do?

#remain #faithful #allweathersaint #refreshher