Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.
James 4:8a (ESV)
Series: His Name is Jesus
Have you ever gone through a season where you felt spiritually tired, but you couldn’t quite explain why?
Not necessarily because something was terribly wrong. You were still showing up. Still praying. Still trying. Yet somewhere along the way, life felt heavier than it should. The joy wasn’t what it once was. The peace seemed harder to find. Minor frustrations felt bigger. Discouragement lingered longer. Maybe you compared your life to someone else’s, carrying burdens you were never meant to carry, or trying to hold everything together in your own strength.
I’ve had seasons like that too.
And when I do, I’ve learned to ask a different question. Not, “What am I doing wrong?” but, “What am I connected to?”
That question causes me to pause every time I read Jesus’ words in John 15:1-5 (ESV):
“I am the True Vine, and my Father is the Vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in Me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
Of all the names He could have chosen, He said, “I am the True Vine.” For years, I focused on the word vine. Then one day, I found myself stopping at a different word.
True.
Because if Jesus is the True Vine, then there must be false vines too.
And suddenly I asked a different question. What kind of vine am I connected to? What am I drawing life from? What am I depending on to sustain me? Could that be why I feel so depleted?
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that every one of us is connected to something. Some people root themselves in success. Others root themselves in relationships, approval, achievements, comfort, control, or financial security. Some even root themselves in ministry activity rather than Christ Himself. None of those things are necessarily bad, but none of them were ever designed to sustain a soul.
They make poor vines because eventually they all run dry.
Only Christ can give life that lasts.
Perhaps that’s why Jesus says, “Whoever abides in Me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (vs 5). The emphasis isn’t on striving. The emphasis is on abiding. Jesus doesn’t tell us to create life. He tells us where to find.
Remain. Stay connected. Draw life from me.
As a gardener, I’ve learned that when a plant begins struggling, the first question usually isn’t, “Why isn’t it producing?” The first question is, “Is it healthy?” Is it getting enough water? Is something choking it out? Have weeds crept in unnoticed? Is it still connected to the source of nourishment it needs to survive?
The problem is rarely what we see above the surface.
The problem is usually found at the source.
Isn’t that true spiritually as well?
Sometimes we become so focused on our circumstances that we stop paying attention to our connection with Christ. We examine our emotions, our accomplishments, our failures, and our frustrations. Meanwhile, Jesus keeps bringing us back to relationship.
“Abide in Me.”
Jesus doesn’t tell us to manufacture strength when we feel weak. He doesn’t tell us to create peace when life feels chaotic. He doesn’t tell us to force growth when we feel stuck. He simply invites us to stay close to Him.
Yet life has a way of growing tangled.
Responsibilities pile up. Worries creep in. Distractions multiply. Before we realize it, we’ve become so busy managing life that we’ve neglected the One who gives us life. Much like weeds in a garden, those things rarely appear overnight. A little worry here. A little self-reliance there. A little comparison. A little bitterness. None of it seems significant at first. Yet over time, those things steal our attention and drain our strength.
Abiding matters, not because Jesus needs our company, but because we need His presence.
Fortunately, we do not have to figure it out on our own. Jesus reminds us that the Father is the Gardener. A good gardener knows when to water, when to prune, when to fertilize, and when to wait. Sometimes growth is visible. Sometimes it happens deep beneath the surface where no one can see it. Sometimes the Gardener removes things we would have preferred to keep. Not because He is punishing us, but because He is preparing us. Every season has a purpose, and every season can draw us closer to the Vine.
Perhaps that is the hope found in this name—True Vine.
We were never meant to sustain the Christian life through our strength, our striving, or our ability to hold everything together. Connection to Christ was always meant to sustain it. So when life feels heavy, tangled, overgrown, or exhausting, perhaps the answer is not to work harder.
Perhaps the answer is to return to the Vine.
Open His Word. Spend time in prayer. Listen for His voice. Sit in His presence. Remember where life comes from. Healthy branches don’t survive by trying harder; they survive because they remain connected to the source of life.
Friends, stay connected, and when you do, everything you need flows from Him.
Holding Fast to Hope,
Steph
Scripture References: James 4:8a; John 15:1-11