Several years have passed since the publication of my book Finding the God-Dependent Life. It's the story of how I learned to depend on God through the gradual breakdown of my self-sufficiency. My inadequacies forced me to depend on Him. In time, it became clear that the same principles that helped me in a crisis could surely help me all the time. So God-dependence became my chosen way of life. The result was greater wholeness and fruitfulness.

A churchgoer who read my book commented to a friend, "If you ask me, Joanie Yoder depends on God too much!" To help me explain the God-dependent life, I've turned that comment into a question: Is it possible to depend on God too much?

Let's answer that question by asking another: Is it possible for a branch to depend too much on the vine? Catherine Marshall wrote, "The point is not that the branches will do better when they are attached to the vine. Unless attached, the branches must wither and die." Jesus taught that unless the branches (you and I) abide in the vine (remain dependent on Him), it's impossible for us to bear His fruit.

Is it possible to depend on God too much? Not if we are to be fruitful branches. What kind of branch are you?  — Joanie Yoder