Day 20: If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish...
Jesus waits for the disciples to stop stirring and muttering after his last analogy of the burning branches. He has used the word remain (menō) six times in this short teaching on staying connected to Jesus. He has given them a vision for fruitfulness if they stay connected, if they abide in the Vine, but isolation, and even death, if they do not make their home in him. Jesus uncrosses his arms and motions to one of the disciples, and then another, and another,
“If you remain…”
and back to himself,
“…in me..”
Then, he opens his hand, places his palm on his heart, then motions back to the group,
“and my words remain in you…”
he says, emphasizing “words”. His eyes get wide, and a smile tinges the good news,
“ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”
The disciples have certainly seen Jesus ask the Father for many things, and the Father has been pleased to give him what he asks. The disciples shift and become more attentive. Could this be possible? Is it true?
Vineyard Metaphor
There is nothing a vineyard manager loves more than choosing the right nutrients for the vine and seeing that choice result in a harvest of beautiful fruit.
One of the key decisions a vineyard manager makes every year is what cover crop to plant during the winter that will feed the soil with the nutrients the vine needs to distribute to its branches. A cover crop is a crop planted to specifically benefit the soil and is not intended to be harvested.
Most often, a crop of mustard flower or some other brassica is planted between the rows of vines just as the rains are starting in late fall.The cover crop grows tall and thick between the rows during the winter, aerating the soil. In the spring, when the cover crop is cut down and mulched back into the soil, the biomass decomposes, enriching the soil with nitrogen. Finally, these brassicas have a special fumigant in their roots that kills nematodes, small worms, which are harmful to the roots of the vine. All in all, a cover crop creates a nutrient-rich environment for the vine.
The vine draws up the nutrients from the soil which has been properly amended with a cover crop. As the branch takes nutrition from the vine, with the better nutrients coming from the soil, the branch gets what it wants: better fruit.
The branch gets to do what it is made to do.
Reflection and Meditation
Just as the branch is created to bear fruit, so are we created to bear fruit.
As we stay connected to the Vine, the life of the Vine is pulled up from the nutritious soil (now amended by the Gardener) to be distributed to the branches. The “call” of the branches for nourishment to produce fruit (grapes!) is always answered by the Vine. A branch of a grape vine will not produce a harvest of apples. Even if a branch desperately wants to produce apples, apples are not part of the DNA of a vine. So, the natural request of the branch, which is in alignment with the DNA of the vine, will always be granted.
Sit with this metaphor of receiving nourishment from the rich soil, through the vine, to produce fruit in keeping with the DNA of the vine.
What is your request of the Vine today? Is it for fruit that is keeping with the DNA of the Vine? Is it fruit that will last? Can you feel the nourishment and the DNA of the Vine rushing to answer your call?
Rest in the love of the Gardener and the nourishment of the Vine.
“Vocation does not come from a voice “out there” calling me to become something I am not. It comes from a voice “in here” calling me to be the person I was born to be, to fulfill the original selfhood given me at birth by God. It is a strange gift, this birthright of self. Accepting it turns out to be even more demanding than attempting to become someone else! I have sometimes responded to that demand by ignoring the gift, or hiding it, or fleeing from it, or squandering it…”