Abide

And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him. See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.  Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.
1 John 2:28-3:10

I have two children, Caleb and Abigail, who are a huge blessing in my life. When I come home after being gone for the day they both scream “Daddeeeey” and want me to hold them. Even when I discipline them, they still will want to be in my lap loving me as much as they can. Is this how I am with God? He calls me His child, but sometimes I seem to push him to the peripherals of my life.

God wants me to abide in Him. This means that I should rely on the power of the Holy Spirit 24/7, not just when I feel like I am in trouble and need to throw a Hail Mary pass. This idea of abiding is daunting because it is sometimes easier to rely on my own abilities. This is not to say that my own abilities are bad because God has given me gifts he wants me to use, but by whose power am I living? Is it God’s or my own? If I am honest, I rely on myself more than I should. God has been showing me that the more I struggle to overcome the sin in my life, the more I sin. But, the more I rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to overcome my struggles, the less sin has a hold on my life. Romans 8:37 tells us that we are more than conquerers through Him who loved us. We are to be overcomers by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Father, help me to be an overcomer by the power of Your Spirit and help me to surrender my desire to do things on my own. – Amen