"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.
If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." - John 15:5-6.
I awoke early to the sound of thunder, wind and hail. The flashes of lightning were so brilliant that it seemed as though the light in my bedroom had been switched on and off quickly. A couple of hours later I prepared my breakfast by the light of a flashlight because the electricity had gone off for a few hours. How grateful I was to have listened to the counsel of our Church leaders and prepared for emergencies.
As I drove to work I was saddened by the sight of many tree limbs that had been broken off during the storm. A few days later I noticed that the leaves on the broken tree limbs had already turned brown. They were dying because they had been cut off from the source of their nourishment, and were now good for nothing but firewood.
Those broken tree limbs seemed to be graphic illustration of what happens to people who allow themselves to be cut off spiritually from the Savior. They wither and die spiritually.
The tree limbs could do nothing to protect themselves from the wind and lightning, but we can protect ourselves from being cut off from the Savior by praying, searching the scriptures, repenting, keeping the commandments, honoring our covenants, and following the counsel of our priesthood leaders. If we continually nourish ourselves spiritually and abide in Christ, we will always be able to draw on His strength to help and protect us from the wind and lightning of Satan, and we shall bring forth fruit worthy of our Father's kingdom.
