The Up Devotional

“Abide in me, and I in you.” That’s what Jesus says in John 15:4. 

The idea of “abiding” with Jesus presumes closeness and time. In other words, it presumes that we are drawing near to him, and that we are prioritizing him in our schedules.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the phrase ‘Slowing down in Jesus.’ This doesn’t mean reducing how fast you drive or pretending that your day-to-day schedule isn’t as busy as it is. It’s about closeness and time. 

It’s about pausing and praying. It’s about paying deliberate attention to his words. It’s about stuffing one less thing into the schedule, so we can be more available to help someone who may need some encouragement.

And that’s the thing. Slower time in Christ means better time with everyone else.

As we spend time with him, we can’t not be changed. His words actually sink in. His Spirit works. We see ourselves with greater clarity. We appreciate our need for grace. When our days start to become less blurry, we can more quickly see his image in his other children.

Increasingly, his light will seep through us and toward the people we love whom God has put into our lives. 

Time with God isn’t taking time away from others—it’s investing in them.

Do you want the time you spend with other people to be of a certain quality? Do you want it to count? Do you want to bless them, even though you often feel flawed? 

If so, slow down in Christ. 

Let him transform you, day by day. Don’t be casual with him. He wants a commitment, not an occasional text. The best thing you can do for other people is to draw closer to the One whose hope, wisdom and self-sacrificial love make all things new. As he blesses you, you will be a vessel of blessing to others.

Slower time in Christ means better time with everyone else. 

Notes:

-The Up Devotional is published 5 days a week (Monday-Friday) and returns on August 10, 2026.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

[Alert: New article for summer, link below.]

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Recently, we have been spending time with John 15:4. That’s where Jesus said: “Abide in me, and I in you.”

In the previous devotional, we talked about taking our time with Jesus’ words instead of rushing past them. This is one of the ways we can “abide” with him. This phrase presumes closeness and time with the Lord.

Here’s another idea. Don’t rush past people’s needs. Let me explain. 

In a section of text about abiding in him, Jesus makes the direct connection to loving others. John 15:10 says: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.” 

One of the ways we “abide” in Jesus, is to abide in his love—which includes loving others as he loved us.

When you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Jesus wants us to prioritize him. He wants us to put him first. Since he gave his life for others, and since he blessed and helped people non-stop, one of the ways we abide in him is to do these same things! 

I heard about a farmer who passed away before his crop was brought in. So the surrounding farmers from his church went over to his place and worked into the night. Only when they had brought in their neighbour’s crop for the benefit of his wife and children did they return to deal with their own.

You may not be a farmer, but you will be given other opportunities to abide in the love of Christ by resisting the urge to rush past people’s needs, and instead to provide help or hope.

I’ve been a pastor for many years. One of my greatest privileges has been to see people sharing the love of Christ. Often, it’s behind-the-scenes, and sometimes it’s anonymous. But it brings a tear to my eye. 

No church is perfect. But when it acts upon the truth and love of Christ, it is powerful.

Jesus said: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love…”

Notes:

-“Keeping Faith in Summer.” This is my latest article for The Gospel Coalition Canada. Finding it hard to stay consistent in summer? If so, you’re not alone. Here are four quick tips. Click here.

-Bible quotes, ESV.

In John 15:4 Jesus says something that is easy to skip over, even though it takes a lifetime to digest: “Abide in me, and I in you.”

Various translation teams have tried to capture this enigmatic phrase. The NET Bible says: “Remain in me, and I will remain in you.” In the footnotes they also use the word “Reside.” 

It’s one of those statements that you need to ponder, and often slowly. When you do, certain implications come to mind. 

One of them has to do with Jesus’ words. In order to abide-remain-reside in Christ, we need to spend time with his words. We can’t rush past what he says in the Gospels, as if his words are ideas to quickly skip over while we get to the more important things on our daily to-do lists. 

One idea is to not rush your Bible-reading. How many of us have goals to read the Bible in a year, or even two years? If you’re on track, and if you’re able to stay focused, that’s great. But for many people, it’s simply too much information. As a result, we might reach our goal, but we haven’t digested 90% of what we’ve read.

Why not slow down a bit? Read less, but in a way that is more fruitful.

Recently, I was reading a passage in John’s Gospel. It was wise and rich. Instead of skipping to my next chapter further on in the New Testament, I simply re-read that same text in John. And the next day, I read it again. I didn’t get as much “done,” but I got more done. Know what I mean? 

There are times when we need to stop rushing, and pull up a rocking chair with the words of Jesus.

Let’s not rush past his words. “Abide in me, and I in you.”

Notes:

-Bible quotes, ESV.

Mark Zuckerberg is the co-founder of Meta and Facebook. In his early days, he had a motto: “Move fast and break things.” 

At first, it seems appealing. ‘Let’s innovate, move forward, and not get held back by the consequences!’ It certainly captures something about the sentiment of our times. 

However, let’s not kid ourselves. Our obsession with speed and busyness is hurting us. It’s also hurting others. 

There was a man who once described himself as a carpenter. He said that he made up for his lack of skill by using a lot of nails.* Yikes! 

Jonathan Haidt is a social psychologist whose latest best-selling book, The Anxious Generation, is making headlines all over the world. He speaks about the rise of smart phones and digital online culture, especially among young people: “the most rapid rewiring of human relationships and consciousness in human history,” he writes, “has made it harder for us all to think, focus, forget ourselves enough to care about others, and build close relationships.”** We all know it’s true.

My point is this. Defeat is not inevitable. We can be a part of a sanctified resistance toward something better, healthier, and more hopeful.

Do we have smart phones? Yes. 
Do we get busy? Yes. 
Do we sometimes get careless? Yes. 

But those don’t need to be the defining qualities of our lives. 

In John 15:4 Jesus says: “Abide in me, and I in you.” Abide. Now there’s a word we don’t use much anymore. It’s kind of like “tarry.” The Message puts it like this: “Make your home in me just as I do in you.”***

Abiding in Christ presumes both closeness and time. It doesn’t rush. It inhales. It exhales. It listens to the Master. 

It trusts.
It transforms.
It loves.
It lives. 

Think back to that motto: “Move fast and break things.” Can we all just say, ‘No thanks’? 

By abiding in Christ, we can be a part of a sanctified resistance toward something better, healthier, and more hopeful.

Notes:

-*Told in: Eugene Peterson, The Pastor: A Memoir (HarperOne, 2012), 277.
-**Jonathan Haidt, The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness (Penguin USA, 2024), 17.
-***Note that The Message is not a translation of the Bible; it is a loose ‘rendering’ by pastor Eugene Peterson.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

The Star Wars movies have spawned a series of spin-off TV shows. One of them is called Andor. 

In it, rebels (who are actually the good guys) are plotting against the evil Empire who keeps trying to expand its grip. It’s appetite for darkness and control seem insatiable.

In Season 2, there is a moving scene that features Cassian, the show’s main character. He meets a new person who has just joined their rebellion against the darkness. She is young and nervous. There is a lot at stake. Is she doing the right thing? What if she gets caught? 

At this point in the show, Cassian is a veteran of the battle. He knows how important it is. He also knows how frightening it must be a new person who has now stepped “into the circle” of the battle.

As tears move slowly down her face, Cassian reassures her by saying: “You’re coming home to yourself.” It was the perfect thing to say. She is now doing what she was made to do. Although it’s difficult, and even scary, she has made a design to align herself with the light, not with the darkness. She isn’t just observing from the sidelines; she doing something about it. That’s the moment when true peace is possible, even though the mayhem roars.

Do you want to be a part of something great? Of something bigger than yourself? Of something that means something, even though it might be scary? It’s called the kingdom of God. And yes, it’s all true. The light, the darkness, heaven, hell, angels, demons, love, hate, truth, deception, coming judgment, the eternal destination of souls, and everything in between. Jesus said: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15).

There are dangers and sacrifices, but also battles and friendships and glories that you won’t experience anywhere else. 

It’s who you were made to be, and your soul won’t settle until you enter into the circle, and come home to yourself.

Notes:

-*Andor, Season 2, Episode 1, “One Year Later.”
-Bible quotes, ESV.

“God is love.” That’s exactly what the apostle John says in 1 John 4:8. He is also “gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love” (Psalm 145:8).

At the same time, he is holy and just. He punishes sin. There are times when he also exercises his wrath. And that, my friends, is not something pleasant! 

Part of the amazing thing about God is that he is all of these things at once. He doesn’t stop being loving when he passes judgment on someone. In fact, in his own sovereignty and wisdom, his judgment is loving. 

In her book, Holier than Thou (which is about God’s holiness), Jackie Hill Perry takes some time to help us think through how these qualities go together, especially when we consider the extent of our own sin, and all the times we have been wayward and faithless. 

She writes: “Scary, to fall into the hands of the living God, until we believe in the One who did so in our place.”*

This is so very true. God’s judgment came down upon our sin—but it came down upon Jesus. In this act of self-sacrifice, he demonstrated perfect holiness, perfect justice, and perfect love—all at the same time.

Earlier, I mentioned that popular verse that says “God is love.” Just two verses later, John says this: “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation [i.e. atoning sacrifice] for our sins.”

Are you nervous about facing God because of your sin? Are you simply unsure about how that will all play out when the final curtain falls? Do you hear stories about God’s judgment and worry for your own soul? 

Fear not.

Know that our God is “slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” Not stingy, but abounding. Ask for forgiveness. Repent. Re-commit to his ways. And resolutely trust in Jesus as Lord, holding fast to the unshakable truth that he lost his life so you could gain yours.

And be at peace.

“Scary, to fall into the hands of the living God, until we believe in the One who did so in our place.”

Notes:

-*Jackie Hill Perry, Holier Than Thou: How God’s Holiness Helps Us Trust Him (Nashville: B&H Publishing, 2021), 19.
-The Up Devotional is published 5 days a week (Monday-Friday) and returns on August 3, 2026.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

I recently spent a lot of time studying 2 Peter. At the end of the letter, he said: “…take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability” (2 Peter 3:17).

This was a topic that was clearly important to him. Since he had already spent an entire chapter on the subject (chapter 2), he wanted to give them one last warning.

Let’s look at his words closely. They continue to be instructive for us today.

First, he says to “take care.” This is about being proactive when it comes to your beliefs.

Second, he mentions being “carried away.” This is what happens when we become passive (instead of proactive).

Third, he warns against “lawless people.” These are the people who lead others astray. How? They are “lawless,” which means that they are promoting teachings which are contrary to God’s wisdom, laws, and instructions.

Fourth, when that happens, we lose our “stability.”

Have you ever been in a tug-of-war? I have. If several matches have happened before your turn, you need to pay careful attention to the ground. No one wants to be standing on a patch of slippery mud when the match begins! 

But that’s exactly what is happening when you get carried away by the error of lawless people. Oh, an in case you think Peter is being over-zealous, remember that Jesus himself also addresses this same subject on multiple occasions (one of them is found in Matthew 7:15-27).

When it comes to forming your belief and practices, are you being carried away?

Are you paying too much attention to a teacher on social media who seems to say the right things but whose personal life is wildly inconsistent with Jesus? 

Are you committed to a certain version of Jesus who never disagrees with you, and who is inconsistent with what you read in the Gospels (which you probably aren’t reading)?

Peter wants us to be stable in our faith. Let’s focus on Christ, his word, and his example of both grace and truth. “…take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability.”

Notes:

-Bible quotes, ESV.

Peter was a fisherman. Jesus called him into a life of discipleship and leadership: “Follow me,” he said, “and I will make you become fishers of men” (Mark 1:17).

Sure, Peter was imperfect. There was a time when he denied Jesus (Luke 22:58). He also had a habit of putting his foot in his mouth, like the time he told the Messiah that he knew more than the Messiah about what the Messiah should be like (Mark 8:32).

Peter was also a fighter. In fact, when people came to arrest Jesus on the evening before his crucifixion, he took out sword and cut off someone’s ear! (John 18:10)

Over time, Peter had to learn how to focus his fight. And that’s exactly what he did. It’s called self-control. We see it on display in his letters in the New Testament. Peter continued to be a leader with zeal, but he learned to redirect his zeal in a healthier and more God-honouring direction.

We can do the same. We need to focus our fight.  

With that in mind, our weapons are spiritual, not physical. We are not fighting against people, but for people. There’s a big difference. Let me say it again. We are not fighting against people, but for people.

Keep fighting for the truth of God. 

Keep fighting for the love of God. 

Keep fighting for the light of God.

Keep fighting for the kingdom of God. 

Keep fighting for the children of God.

Keep fighting for the people that God has put into your life.

Keep fighting for your soul, and for the souls of men and women and boys and girls for whom Christ died. 

Life is a battleground. What’s to be done? Focus on God. Rest when you can. Keep the big priorities at the top of your list…

And keep fighting. Because our God will never stop fighting for you.

Notes:

-“Keep Fighting” Click here. Sermon.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

“The LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him…” (Exodus 15:2)

Recently, I saw a video someone recorded while passing by a home. It had been devastated by a massive fire. The entire inside was burned out. All that was left were some smoke-stained exterior walls. 

On the lawn were some large white letters that had been erected for the benefit of onlookers. They said: “Still we will praise Him!!”

Wow, and double wow. I believe their words may have been an adaptation of Job 13:15. He had lost so much, and yet he still honoured God.

This is a powerful message for all of us as well. God is always good, holy, wise, loving and true. He is never not those things—even when we don’t know how all the pieces fit together, and even when we can’t see through the confusing smoke of our own hardships.

This doesn’t mean that everything is good. It isn’t. There is pain and suffering that is very bad—and sometimes even evil. 

But that doesn’t mean God isn’t on his throne. And it doesn’t mean that God has ceased to be himself. It means that we live in a world with free will, bad decisions, worse consequences, demonic powers, and tragedy.

In the midst of it all, God is able to work in the life of his people and bring good out of bad (see Romans 8:28). Further, he gives us hope, strength, direction, forgiveness, and a forever home with never-ending peace and joy. 

Are you facing difficulty? Let’s find inspiration in some big white letters on a lawn: 

“Still we will praise Him!!”

Notes:

-“Keep Fighting” Click here. Sermon.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

As you probably know, Jerusalem has seen a lot of bombs. 

Fairly recently, I learned about a group of people named the Zaka. After a bomb goes off, they put on their yellow visibility vests and rush to the scene. They often get there before the paramedics. 

They gather the body pieces of people who have been blown up. That is not a very nice job. Nor is it a job that a lot of people want to do. And yet, this is a part of how they serve others. 

Like many other Jewish people, they believe that it is best if a person can be buried with all of their parts together. They do their work to honour this belief and tradition, as an act of respect toward the dead, and to help grieving families through a horrific experience.*

Here’s why I mention the Zaka. You are probably not doing that kind of volunteer work. However, you are going to be called upon to do difficult things for your faith. This is a word that we all need to hear. 

You. Faith. Includes. Doing. Hard. Things. 

This doesn’t mean that everything is hard. In fact, some things seem rather easy. And yes, walking with Christ includes comfort, help and hope. But it also includes a narrow path, self-sacrifice, and things like loving enemies and trusting God in places that just so happen to be outside of your comfort zone. 

In John 12:26, Jesus said: “If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”

This verse makes us ask a question. Since we are supposed to be where Jesus is, where is he? He is where people are loved, where the truth is told, where our Father is honoured, and where his light forces back a darkness whose greatest power is intimidation and fear.

Don’t settle for a counterfeit Jesus who only every pats you on the back as you do easy things. Trust the real Jesus who died for you, calls you forward in triumphant purpose, and changes the world.

“…and where I am,” Jesus says, “there will my servant be also.”

Notes:

-“The Disclosure Day movie—aliens, demons, nuns, Hollywood, and other wild stuff.” Click here, or find it on ‘The Pulse Podcast with Matthew Ruttan’ (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.)

-*Told in: Mitch Albom, Have a Little Faith (New York: Hyperion, 2009), 88.
-Bible quotes, ESV.