“Abide in me as I abide in you,” Jesus says (John 15:4). Which begs the question, how do we abide with the one who abides in us? If Jesus through the Holy Spirit has taken up residence in the body of believer, isn’t it in a way impossible not to abide?

Yet we know from human relationships that at times we are with someone but not really with them. The body is present, but the mind, heart, and affections are elsewhere. 

Abide is defined in one dictionary as ​“to continue to be present.” In other words, abiding is about awareness and attentiveness.

I’ve been working on cultivating awareness of God during that crucial time in the morning upon awakening but before arising. It takes tremendous effort, I’ve found, to push back the tsunami of thought that rushes upon me. ​“The Lord is here,” I whisper aloud until my mind quiets and my heart recognizes the reality of that statement. Then I move into a line or two of the 23^rd Psalm or the Lord’s Prayer. Nothing fancy here — just taking the lead of countless saints and attempting to become present to the Present One. Doing this provides a good scaffolding from which to build the day.

In her talk ​“Doorways to the Prayerful Life,” given twenty years ago at a Renovaré conference themed around The Divine Conspiracy, Emilie Griffin gives more insights into building a prayer life with ​“shape and structure.” At the end of the talk is a Q&A which is a delight to listen to. In it, Dallas Willard offers gems about prayer, request, and attentiveness.

John Baillie also began his mornings lining his heart up with God’s heart. Below is a portion of one of his morning prayers (several more are featured on the website this week):

O You who alone know what lies before me this day, grant that in every hour of it I may stay close to You. Let me be in the world, yet not of it. Let me use this world without abusing it. If I buy, let me be as though I possessed not. If I have nothing, let me be as though possessing all things. Let me today embark on no undertaking that is not in line with Your will for my life, nor shrink from any sacrifice which Your will may demand. Suggest, direct, control every movement of my mind; for my Lord Christ’s sake. Amen.