May 1, 2021

Remain in me, as I remain in you…By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. – John 15:4,8

These words from John’s gospel are the words of Jesus Himself. He calls us to remain in Him. How do we accomplish that? How do we stay close to Jesus in a world that pulls us away from His brand of love at every turn?

I think we first must know who Jesus is. I think it takes a lifetime to learn who Jesus is. It is never too late to start the learning. We can grow in our understanding of who Jesus is by reading sacred Scriptures. We learn about our own family history by listening to stories about our relatives. It is the same with Jesus. The bible is full of the stories of the God who loves us, the covenant God made with us, and how God sent Jesus to fulfill that covenant. We can grow in our knowledge of Jesus by attending mass and receiving Jesus in the Eucharist. We can learn more about Jesus right now, wherever we are reading these words, if we simply ask Him to draw us to Himself; if we just invite Him into every part of our lives.

What does it look like to “bear much fruit and become disciples” of our Lord? We grow in discipleship when we learn to love as He loved. We grow when we listen to and read His holy Word and spend time with other people who know who He is. We become more like a disciple of Jesus when we step out beyond our comfort zone to do something for someone else.

Let us ask the Lord to draw us closer to Him, that we may come to know Him better and follow His will for our lives. Let us ask Him for the grace we need to remain in Him, bearing fruit and growing in discipleship all the days of our lives.

He is Risen! Alleluia!



©Mary V. Pribbenow