From the Pastor's Heart by Pastor Therese Elizabeth for First Church of the Nazarene in Pasadena, California, United States for Monday, 28 May 2018

Dear ones,
Today in worship, we walked through John 15:1-17, and unpacked Jesus’s teaching on the vineyard. Jesus’s proclamation that he is the true vine and we are the branches is at the heart of Christian discipleship. We mustn’t simply wonder or guess what it means to be a disciple of Jesus; rather, we can discover the vision of discipleship all throughout scripture, and especially in the gospels.
We together discovered that fruit-bearing doesn’t come when one decides to muster up enough strength, courage, or self-discipline; rather, fruit-bearing comes from one place and one place alone: from the Living Vine, King Jesus. Jesus is the source of life, and central to the life of the disciple is a life of abiding.
Another way to put it is to tether ourselves to Jesus – day-in and day-out; and when we tether ourselves to Jesus, we open ourselves up to the transforming work of the Triune God. You see, the one who tethers himself or herself to Jesus is known by the fruits that flow from the Vine. We then begin to reflect the very character of the one we follow. We begin to talk like Jesus, think like Jesus, imitate Jesus, and live like Jesus. The abundant life of the Christian is a life that flows through the branch from the Vine, is cared for by God the Father (the Vine Dresser), and nourished by the Spirit.
But here’s the thing we must understand: Abiding isn’t just about you. Abiding isn’t so that you suddenly have a one-way ticket to heaven. Abiding isn’t for your glory, either. Jesus is clear…

• Abiding is to the Father’s glory.

"This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:8)
Another way to put it is this…

• Abiding is mission critical.

That’s right – mission critical. Tethering ourselves to Jesus means more of imitating Jesus and less of imitating the world. Tethering ourselves to Jesus means submitting ourselves to the life of discipleship, and saying no to anything that gets in the way. And in doing this, the world captures a vision of the Good, Good Father.
Have you ever heard someone say something like this? “I love Jesus, but I don’t love the people who follow Jesus.”
Ouch.
Could it be because we don’t actually look like the one we “follow”? Perhaps. When I consider the health of the local vineyard at PazNaz, we have by no means arrived. No church has. In fact, I believe there has been some pruning. I believe there are withered branches. But I’m OK with that, because I trust the Vinedresser above all else. Not only that, but I trust and believe that the Spirit of Pentecost will always continue to propel the Bride of Christ into the future – as I said today, “It IS raining in the Vineyard!” For the future of our local vineyard - PazNaz - we must tether ourselves to Jesus.
Of course, tethering (abiding) ourselves to Jesus means we commit to the day-in and day-out life of being led by the Spirit. It means committing ourselves to the unforced rhythms of grace, and orienting ourselves to a disciplined life.
And when it comes to the local vineyard, it means committing ourselves to….

• Deeply listen to the Spirit. 

Remember that it’s all about relationship – relationship with God and with others.
Be open to the God who makes all things new.
Let go of any preconceived idea of ministry/programs (sometimes we are tempted to worship strategies/techniques/preferences more than the Holy Chaos of the Spirit). Hear the words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer:

He who loves his dream of a community more than the Christian community itself becomes a destroyer of the latter, even though his personal intentions may be ever so honest and earnest and sacrificial… The man who fashions a visionary ideal of community demands that it be realized by God, by others, and by himself. He enters the community of Christians with his demands, sets up his own law, and judges the brethren and God himself accordingly…. When things do not go his way, he calls the effort a failure. When his ideal picture is destroyed, he sees a community going to smash. So he becomes first an accuser of his brethren, then an accuser of God, and finally the despairing accuser of himself.  (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together)

• Resist the temptation to control outcomes within the church, and let the Spirit lead the outcome. 
• Steward your resources for the bride of Christ and the mission of God. 
• Learn the discipline practicing the ministry of presence – that is, showing up for others, not always just me. 
• Reflect the love of Jesus – that is, learn to lay down our lives for our friends as Jesus did for his..
• Daily tend to the presence of God as we tend to others around us. 
• Step into the future with faith (though it may be blind!), and trust that the outcome of our local vineyard is up to God, not us.

Dear ones, I pray constantly for our vineyard. I long to see days of abundance and flourishing, and often times I get to the front row seat of just that. Will you join me in prayer?
A special note about Summer…
It’s hard to believe, but my boys only have 3 more days of school. With today being a Sunday on a holiday weekend, I believe we have a glimpse into what Summer will be like – vacations, weddings, and traveling.
Please remember us as you travel. Your generosity through tithes and offerings is more than a drop in the bucket; rather, it is an act of worship and crucial to the mission at PazNaz.
Often times, giving is lean during the Summer, so we invite you to be diligent in remembering to give each week. If you are traveling, you can easily tithe online: http://www.paznaz.org/give
Bless you, dear ones, and have the most wonderful and restful Memorial Day.
I need you; you need me; we need you; you need us.
From my heart,
Pastor Tara Beth
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