"Without Me you can do nothing"

In John 15:5, Jesus said, “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.” I’ve been thinking about this verse in relation to my schoolwork at Colorado Christian University. I have just finished my final class at CCU! It’s the end of a six year journey. I give all the honor, glory, and praise to God. Without Him I could not have reached the finish line.

Let me give an example as to why I say this. I can’t tell you the number of times that I would look at the guidelines for what I was expected to do for an assignment, and be faced with the reality of a blank computer screen! I would be completely lost as to what to write, but then without warning, God would send an idea to me. I’m not saying this was the pattern for every assignment, certainly some of the assignments were easier for me than others, but still this happened more than once.

Someone might argue that what I’m talking about wasn’t actually from God, but it was due to my own ingenuity and creativity. Even if I thought completing all my homework assignments were due to my own cleverness and skill (which you know I’m not saying), I would still propose that ultimately God deserves all the credit. Why? Because God was the one who created my brain in the first place. God was the one who protected me as I travelled to and from CCU during my in-seat classes. God was the one who kept my heart beating. God was the one who gave me breath to sustain me to face all those class projects.

Let me give you some Scripture verses.  Isaiah 42:5 reads, "This is what God the Lord says - he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk in it."  Job 12:9-10: "Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this, in whose hand is the life of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind" (NKJV)? What a great verse!  "Don't you realize," Job asks, "that it is God Himself who holds the life and the breath of every living thing?"   Psalm 4:8: "I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustained me."

The main point I’m trying to make here is this: Jesus was right when He said, "Without Me, you can do nothing" (John 15:5). Once again, I want to publicly give God all the honor, glory, and praise for helping me to finish all that work at CCU.

Kevin