ALIGNING OURSELVES WITH GOD'S WORD

John 15:7 "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you."

The word 'if' is used to introduce the specific condition under which something will happen. Our verse of focus begins with the conditional phrase, "If you abide in me", which means that Jesus states the position that we, as His followers must occupy. We must dwell, live, stay in Him. We must be totally dependent on Jesus for every aspect of our lives. Such a position requires faith, much enduring faith. We have no clue as to what will happen the next moment.

Therefore, we must rely on the only Person, who does. That Person is the Omniscient, all-knowing God.

Reliance upon God strengthens our relationship and fellowship with Him. As a result, His words will abide in us. The outflow of having His words abide in us, is to experience a better relationship with God and by extension with each other.  In addition, having His Word abide us, empowers us to resist temptations. When we are confronted,  we will respond with the words of Jesus, "It is  written."

Our verse concludes with Jesus making a very  strong statement, "ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you," which is indicative of the quality of our prayer life. Praying the words of Jesus, and allowing His words to abide in us, keep our  prayers conformed to His will. When God answers our prayers, He always does so in accordance with His will, not ours. Effective prayer is the harmony, that blends our desires and God's will. We encounter much lack when we do not align ourselves with God's will.

Now is the time for us to allow the Holy Spirit to bring us in unison with God's word, which is His will. Such an experience will enhance our lives beyond measure. A whole new world will be opened before us. Our prayer life will be stronger and our understanding of God will undoubtedly expand.