Life is full of distractions, demands, and moments that pull our attention in a thousand different directions. But when we abide in Christ, we make Him our focus — staying with Him, living deeply in Him, and preparing our hearts for His return.
An Old Man Writing to People He Loved
1 John does not read like Paul’s letters. There is no greeting, no list of names, no travel plans. It opens abruptly, almost mid-thought, with a man insisting that he heard this, he saw this, he touched this with his own hands.
That insistence is the whole point. John is writing late in his life, decades after the resurrection, to churches being worked on by teachers claiming that Jesus was not really, physically here — that He only seemed human, and that real faith was a matter of special knowledge available to a select few.
Against that, John keeps doing two things. He insists Jesus was real and touchable. And he keeps calling his readers children. Not students. Not initiates. Children.
So when he says “stay with Christ,” he is not handing out a technique. He is doing what someone near the end of his life does when he has watched people wander off and does not want it to happen again. He is saying: do not go looking for a deeper secret. Stay where you are. What you already have is the real thing.
What Abiding in Christ Means
Sticking with Christ. No matter what comes, we hold on, remaining focused, faithful, and persistent in our relationship with Him.
Living deeply in Christ. Not settling for surface-level faith, but seeking a real, intimate, and deeply rooted connection with Jesus.
Being confident and prepared to meet Him. Without guilt or a need to make excuses, live in such a way that when He returns, we will welcome Him with joy and confidence.
Abiding Is Not a Feeling
The word we translate “abide” or “stay” is about remaining in place. It is the least dramatic verb in the New Testament. Nothing about it is a mountaintop experience.
That is good news, because it means abiding is available on the flat days. You are abiding when you pray badly. You are abiding when you read a chapter and feel nothing and read it anyway. You are abiding when you keep showing up in a season where God seems quiet.
Staying is not the same as feeling. Most of the staying happens when the feeling is gone.
What This Looks Like on a Tuesday
Find out what you actually abide in. Whatever your attention goes to first in the morning and last at night — that is what you are currently living deeply in. For most of us that answer arrives instantly and is not Jesus.
You do not have to overhaul it. Move one thing. Put something of His in front of the thing that usually goes first.
This week, let’s abide in Jesus Christ — not just in moments of prayer or worship, but in every part of our lives. Let’s fix our eyes on Him, trust Him fully, and allow Him to be the center of everything.
Watch This Week’s Devotional
A Prayer for This Week
Jesus, keep me from going looking for something deeper than You. Teach me to stay when it is dull and to stay when it is hard. Let my ordinary days be lived in You, not just my best ones. Amen.
The Passage
“And now, children, stay with Christ. Live deeply in Christ. Then we’ll be ready for him when he appears, ready to receive him with open arms, with no cause for red-faced guilt or lame excuses when he arrives.”
Read the passage in full on Bible.com.
Taking It Into Your Week
- Name the thing that pulls your attention first thing every morning. That is what you are currently abiding in.
- Pick one ordinary task this week — feeding animals, driving, washing dishes — and give it to Him while you do it.
- Ask whether your faith is rooted or just familiar. The two can look alike from the outside.
More Farm Sunday Devotionals
Pass on the Good News. Now that’s BombDiggity.
Written by
Lane and Jules Morris
Authors and University of Tennessee faculty writing from our farm in East Tennessee about gardening, the farm kitchen, faith and designing a flourishing life at any age. More about us
