1) Abide

Abide. What do you think of when you hear that word? I looked up the definition and discovered it means "to remain in one place; to continue to be sure or firm; to dwell or sojourn." 

As a small group leader for YACC (Young Adults College and Careers) at our church, we are undergoing a study called "Abide," where we learn to abide in God and in the time that we spend with Him. If I was to share my opinion with you about personal time with God, I would likely tell you that it's important - it's something that should be done.

I'm a big list person. Every morning I start off my day with writing a list of things to accomplish by the time the sun goes down. Always at the top of my list, I write down: 1) Devotions. And, typically, about half an hour later, I will take up that list and put a big, black line through the word "Devotions," breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that "phew! I got that out of the way!", and then continue on with my day.

Since when did my worship with God become a 30 minute time slot that I needed to put a harsh, angry scratch through? It's like I set an egg timer and as soon as the bell would ring, I would stuff our omnipresent God back into His box, only to allow Him out the next day for His daily scheduled appointment. "To dwell or sojourn" has had no place in my devotional walk.

I looked up the antonyms of "abide" and was shocked at what I found: "depart, migrate, leave, reject, resist, quit, hurry, move..." And while those words may seem a bit drastic, allow the reality of them to sink in. Up until now, every time I closed my Bible up, I would migrate to the next thing on my list, depart and hurry onto other more pressing matters.

God, teach me to abide. Slow me down so that I allow my thoughts to dwell and sojourn, to remain in one place, to continue to be sure and firm on You. Change my daily list to read: 1) Abide. And let me not put a line through it. Instead, grant me the perseverance to never fully accomplish or finish abiding in You.