Come Follow Me: Abiding & Prayer

Pastor Steve Poole

1. We all abide in something

2. Abiding in Jesus means orienting our lives around Jesus the source of life, strength and

vitality.

• “Just as branches draw life and nourishment from the vine, so believers draw spiritual life, strength and

vitality from Christ. He is not an accessory to our lives; He is the source of our life.” (Rev. Kyle Borg, TableTalk)

• 2 Peter 1:3-7

3. Two core abiding practices are Bible study and prayer.

4. Deeper abiding takes pruning.

SCRIPTURE: John 15:1-5

1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.

2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.

3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

NEXT STEPS

1. Believe and begin following Jesus and abiding in Him.

2. Answer the following questions as you abide in Jesus through prayer this week.

⃞ Envision starting your day with prayer. What excites you? What challenges you?

⃞ Think about your week and come up with a plan. When and where will you engage in prayer?

⃞ Pray and ask God what may need to be pruned from your life? What has He shown you?

SCRIPTURE: 2 Peter 1:3-7

3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge,

6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness,

7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.

Come Follow Me

Pastor Kent Landhuis

THEME - Following Jesus in 2026 will transform our lives.

TEXT - Mark 1:16-20, 35-39

1. Be with Jesus. (Vision)

• What does abiding with Jesus look like?

• What kind of person will I become when I abide with Jesus?

• What is at stake if I don’t abide? (Why is this a better alternative?)

2. Become like Jesus. (Intention)

• Have I truly decided to change? (Desire without intention is useless.)

• Have I moved from preference to conviction?

3. Do what Jesus did. (Means.)

• “Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning.” (Dallas Willard)

• Have I identified spiritual practices and a community of accountability?

NEXT STEPS

1. Name your quiet place and time

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2. Name your spiritual practices:

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Four Chair Disciples: Healthy things grow.

The Biblical vision of discipleship points to organic (a seed or a tree), not mechanical growth (an assembly line). Growth is not an event but a slow and steady process requiring nurture, cultivation, and patience. The soil of growth is relationships developed in real-life situations, in real-time, with real people. We divide this process into four stages:

Chair 1: Come and See - Seekers

Chair 2: Follow and Grow - Believers

Chair 3: Abide and Serve - Servants

Chair 4: Go and Bear Fruit - Reproducers

People in Chair 1 explore Jesus and one question key to growth is to ask and answer the question “Is Jesus Lord and savior?”

People in Chair 2 discover new life in Jesus by asking “Who is Jesus and what is his mission?”

People in Chair 3 are growing in Jesus so that they learn to serve Jesus through serving others. They learn to ask, “What is the cost of following Jesus?” and “Where is God calling me to go and what is God calling me to do?”

People in Chair 4 are maturing as disciples and they are reproducing faith in others through discipleship and mentoring. They ask questions like “Who else is God calling?” and “Who is next for me to disciple?” and “How does the power of Jesus work through me?”