“Abide in me, and I in you. Just as the branch is not able to bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so also are you unable, unless you abide in me.” (John 15:4)

The word abide that we find in this verse comes from the Hebrew word "yashab," meaning to sit, dwell, or remain. When abide is used in Paul’s letters, it comes from the New Testament Greek  word "meno," which means to stay, remain, or continue. 

Take a moment to be still. Take a deep breath and notice what it feels like to just stay exactly where you are. Invite Jesus into this moment with you. 

To abide in Christ is not simply one action that we take. Dwelling is just another word for living. We are called to live our lives in Christ, centering our day to day lives on him. “For in him we live, and move, and have our being.” (Acts 17:28). 

We all know the feelings of stress and anxiety that arise when our lives are focused on efficiency and busyness. In my experience, there are three foundational practices that can help us abide in Jesus, as we try to slow down and re-prioritize our spiritual lives. Prayer, becoming more aware of the presence of God and participating in the life of the Church help us to put Jesus at the center of our lives in a very practical way. 

Prayer

Abiding with Jesus begins and ends with prayer. Prayer is the two-way communication between God and us, the bedrock of a personal relationship with him. Prayer includes practices such as the rosary, liturgy of the hours and Lectio Divina. Yet, many of the saints underscore that mental prayer and silence are central to growing in intimacy with God.  As St. Teresa of Avila says, “Mental prayer is nothing but a friendly conversation in which the soul speaks, heart-to-heart, with the One Who we know loves us.” It is in the secret of our hearts that we can share our hopes, desires, sins, and needs with God, and ask Him what He wants of us. 

If you don’t know where to start, simply speak to God as you would your closest friend, even just for five minutes as you sit in silence. By having this disciplined time of prayer, you will strengthen your spiritual muscles to carry that friendship into the rest of the day as you seek to live your life with Christ. 

Presence

Practicing the Presence of God  is a book which was written by a seventeenth century monk named Brother Lawrence. The book recounts Brother Lawrence’s great desire and commitment to live in the Presence of God at all times. It teaches the art of establishing oneself in God’s presence by inviting him to the ordinary happenings of our lives. This is not to say that we have to be thinking about God constantly or directly addressing Him in our words every moment of every day; it is simply that we extend an open invitation to Him.

“He does not ask much of us, merely a thought of Him from time to time, a little act of adoration, sometimes to ask for His grace, sometimes to offer Him your sufferings, at other times to thank Him for the graces, past and present. Lift up your heart to Him during your meals and in company; the least little remembrance will always be the most pleasing to Him. One need not cry out very loudly; He is nearer to us than we think.”

This moment by moment acknowledgement of God’s presence with us is how we can abide in him, even when we are on the go. 

Participation 

Actively participating in the life of the Church through the Sacraments and through acts of service reinforce our commitment to living our lives in Christ and for Him as well. The Sacraments, specifically the Eucharist and confession, provide us with the graces that we need to become more aware of Jesus’ presence with us and grow in virtue. 

Acts of service, both for the Church and for others around us remind us that our lives are not our own. This can include anything from volunteering at your parish, to welcoming a new family into your home for dinner. We are fed interiorly through prayer and the sacraments, so that we can in turn give externally to those around us. As the Scripture says, we will not bear fruit unless we abide in Christ the vine. 

The fruits of abiding in Christ are peace, joy, an ability to discern God’s will, and a greater desire to serve God and others. When we abide in Christ, we feel content.When we meet God in our day to day lives, we can begin to see how the circumstances of our lives have been arranged to lead us to greater holiness and ultimately the eternal peace and rest of heaven. 

Our lives are not a sprint, but rather a marathon. There may be seasons where we can enter deeply into abiding, and at other times we may fall out of the practice. We can take encouragement from the words of Servant of God Catherine Doherty: “With God, every moment is the moment of beginning again.” (Season of Mercy, (1996), pp. 61-62,) Each day we can make an effort to unite our lives with Christ just a little more, and soon we will discover the peace that comes from abiding with Him.