Transformations

"I am the vine; you are the branches.  He who abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."  John 15:5

After a year or more of neglect, my gracious parents took pity on me and came to the rescue of my poor, pitiful flowerbeds.  While my family went on a camping trip, my parents came and put in numerous hours of hard labor on my attention-deprived landscaping around our house.  It was less of a makeover and more of an overhaul!

The beautiful transformation that took place didn't come without a cost.  Sweat, blisters, fire ant bites, poison ivy, 20 heavy bags of mulch, torrential downpours . . . you name it, they endured it!  And in spite of the fact that they bore the brunt of the hard work, it's my responsibility to maintain what they worked for, or else all of their hard work was done in vain.

Aren't most transformations that way?  They require continual upkeep.  I get my hair styled at a salon called Transformations.  Their stylists can transform your appearance for a period of time, but before you know it, roots will need recolored, brows will need rewaxed, nails will need repolished, and hair will need to be trimmed in order to maintain the specific look you desire.  

I've seen many people make what appeared to be drastic transformations in their lives, yet after a period of time the makeover was nothing more than a memory.  Some will try to give up something bad or try to start doing something good.  They might try to forfeit a vice or a bad habit like smoking or swearing, or maybe they'll try to begin a new routine like going to church regularly or exercising.  Whichever they attempt, lasting transformations are difficult to achieve when attempted in our own power.

The most important transformation a person makes is when they fully surrender their lives to Christ. However, this transformation is not anything that they themselves are making.  Christ is the One doing the transforming.  

Scripture tells us exactly how to ensure that our spiritual transformation is a lasting one. Prior to Jesus' journey to the cross, He spoke some enlightening words to His closest followers.  He gave them the kind of advice that many people would pay big money to hear from a life coach!  He told them exactly what their life needed to look like if they were going to see true and lasting change.  Following through with three little words would be what was needed for a genuine transformation to occur.  He simply said:

"Abide in me."   

Sounds easy, doesn't it?  Well it must not be, or else we'd be seeing an explosive revival across our land because of all of the transformations that are taking place in the lives of His people.  It's not easy because it's so much easier to abide in worldly pleasures, our families, our next vacation, or the amount of money that is or isn't in our bank accounts. Abiding in Him requires intentionality and desire.

So, how do we abide in Him?  

Going to church regularly doesn't mean you're abiding in Him.  You can even read the Bible everyday and still not be abiding in Him.  No, it's more than following a ritual and fulfilling obligations.  

Abiding in Him is making your union and relationship with Christ the foremost important part of your day, your week, and your life.  It's communing with Him moment by moment. It's desiring what He desires and pursuing what He would want you to pursue.  

The best part of this kind of transformation is that it is all natural.  As you are steadfast in your relationship with Him, the thoughts you think, the words you speak, and the life you lead will naturally reflect more of Jesus and less of you.  Trying to do those things in your own power might produce a short-lived change, but nothing that that will last.  

Perhaps we should all stop for a moment and reflect on the transformations that we have or have not seen in our lives.  Perhaps you have seen temporal changes from time to time, but are lacking that true and lasting change that comes from abiding in Christ.  Perhaps you have always had the desire to be transformed in the image of Christ but all of your efforts have produced little fruit because you were relying on yourself and not on Christ working in you.

If you truly want to have a transformed life that reflects what He's done and continues to do in your life, then hear Christ speak those three simple words to you, just as He spoke them to His disciples:

"Abide in me."

And be prepared to see Him transform you from the inside out.