Are you the kind of person who enjoys checking things off your to-do list?   I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5 ESV   We spoke about abiding in yesterday's message. Look for it if you haven't heard it. Today, I want to concentrate on the phrase, "for apart from me, you can do nothing." What did Jesus mean?   Certainly, he couldn't mean absolutely nothing. Apart from Jesus many things have been done. But I think he's talking about things that will matter forever. We can't bear any eternal fruit. We can't lay up any treasure in heaven (Matthew 6:20) apart from Jesus, either.   Are we just in this life for what we can get in this life? Or do we want to believe in something beyond this life? If you want to believe something beyond the years in this body, then Jesus is very clear. There is only one way to get to the next life with any choices.   And when I consider this 2nd life that lasts forever, I can consider how by abiding Jesus I can do something. Apart from him I can do nothing. So I concentrate on Jesus and what he would have me do. Then I must trust that what I'm doing amounts to "something."   Today, do you want to do "something?" Let's concentrate on Jesus and then trust him. If we can join him, know him, grow our trust in him, believe him, study him. If we can learn about him from our local church and from trusted teachers and friends who follow him, then we can expect we're doing something. Our life makes a difference. This is one of the reasons we say, what we do because we follow Jesus matters, forever. If you'd like to grow closer to Jesus and abide in him, get around his people. One place you can do that online is at https://community.FollowerofOne.org.