The Vine and the Branches

As I listened to the talk by Elder José A. Teixeira from the most recent conference I was struck by something he said.  He referred to the metaphor of the Savior as the Vine, and us as the branches.  The reference is in John 15:

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

 5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Because I have been thinking of the atonement and how it relates to me today I saw something in this example that has never before caught my attention.  If we can picture the vine growing, and a branch laying on the ground, it is clear that it is meaningless to expect that branch to produce anything.  I have always understood that portion of the picture, even if it hits me a little harder now.  But the other part of that is, if you picture the branch connected to the vine, there is no sudden moment when the vine imparts strength to the branch, and in fact there is no time when the branch is not being nourished by the vine.  So in very fact, we are constantly nourished and strengthened by the atonement of Jesus.  The atonement is not just present in our lives, it is central to our lives.

Orange Juice - A very brief play in one act

Orange Juice

A very brief play in 1 act

Cast of characters:

Me (played by me)
A friend (played by a friend of mine)

Friend:  I sure am thirsty!

Me: Here, have some of this orange juice I'm drinking.  It's really good.

F: Oh, no.  I won't drink that orange juice.

M: Why not? You said you were thirsty.

F:  But that orange juice is clearly mislabeled.

M: What do you mean, mislabeled?

F:  What does it say right there? (pointing to the label)

M: (Reading from label) "Made from oranges imported from Bolivia."

F:  See?  That proves it!

M:  (Now thoroughly confused) What does that prove?

F:  There is no proof that those oranges came from Bolivia, nor indeed that there are any juice oranges from Bolivia.

M:  Well, OK, I can't trace this particular bottle, but I've eaten oranges in Bolivia.

F:  But those aren't oranges used for making juice, and there is no proof that that company ever imported oranges from Bolivia.

M:  Well, OK.  I don't know much about making orange juice, I guess.  But won't you try some anyway?

F:  Oh, no.  I would rather be thirsty than to drink a lie!

The End