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Written by Michelle J. Goff, Founder and Executive Director of Iron Rose Sister Ministries
Agricultural analogies can be found throughout the Old and New Testaments. For farming and shepherding communities in the Bible lands, these were practical examples used to teach us about God’s nature and His Kingdom. John 15 is one of those examples. In that chapter, we find the final time that Jesus makes one of His “I AM” statements, ultimately equating Himself with YHWH, Yahweh, the LORD, or Jehovah.
I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener.
I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (Jn 15:1, 5 NIV)
Through the imagery of the Vine, Jesus illustrates the necessity of remaining in the Vine for the vitality of the branches—relationship with God. He also highlights the importance of bearing more fruit as the branches reproduce and multiply—relationships with others.
Does that sound familiar? Yes! The central core of Iron Rose Sister Ministries’ vision can be found in John 15. We exist to equip women to connect to God and one another more deeply.
Throughout 2026, we will be equipping women in these two relational areas using John 15 as our primary text. The blog posts will develop the theme, the virtual events will expound upon it, and new online resources will be released that will multiply our efforts.
As we roll out the topic through the month of January, I want to elaborate on four key points found in John 15.
- Jesus is the True Vine, and His Father is the Gardener (Jn 15:1). God is our source of life and love (Jn 15:1, 9). We must remain in Him and in His love to survive.
- We must extend God’s love to others. If we remain in God’s love as His love remains in us, we have love from which to obey His commands to love Him and love others (Jn 15:12-13, 17; Mt 22:36-40).
- The fruit of a disciple is another disciple. We show that we are His disciples by bearing the fruit of another disciple. And we were appointed to bear that fruit—fruit that will last (Jn 15:8, 16).
- Apart from God, we can do nothing (Jn 15:5). As the apostle Paul described, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow” (1Co 3:6).
Each one of those points could be its own lesson. The teachings of Jesus in John 15 provide such richness, abundance, and layers of application as spoken to His followers and penned by the apostle John.
The first 17 verses of John 15 are written out in chapter 10 of One Single Reason: Conversations with Single Women. The accompanying exercise from those verses affirms that the two deepest desires of our heart are relationship and purpose.
We cannot be disciples nor bear the fruit of more disciples without a relationship with the True Vine.
How can you prioritize being connected to the True Vine this week?
What one step can you take this week to plant, water, or specifically pray for someone in whom God can bring the growth of a disciple?
How can we encourage or equip you toward those goals?
For 2026, let’s bear fruit together!
Written by Michelle J. Goff, Founder and Executive Director of Iron Rose Sister Ministries
The year 2025 has provided ample opportunity to learn and practice wisdom. As with any type of practice, we did not do it perfectly from the start, but learned along the way and grew as a result.
Faith is a wise woman practice. It is a noun, but one that implies action. The apostle James stated, “But someone will say, ’You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds” (Jas 2:18 NIV). The more we exercise our faith, the stronger it grows. Others see evidence of our faith by our actions.
Hebrews 11 is the highlight reel for many heroes of the faith. It is like the social media summary of their spiritual lives. That brief description of their faith does not permit the detailed retelling of what happened throughout their stories. Each of them had to practice their faith over time. Generations later, we see the fruit of their faith.
Over the past year, women from across the Americas have shared their own words of wisdom as we have highlighted different facets of “Practice Like a Wise Woman.” Whether you read every post as it was published or are a new reader of our blog, we invite you to scroll back through the articles from this past year and reflect on the impact of practicing like wise women who build their houses on the Rock (Mt 7:24).
We should all “Pray about it!” Instead of getting frustrated about what we can’t do, remember when Jesus recognized the woman who sacrificed for Him. In His own words, “She Did What She Could,” preparing Christ’s body for His burial. During the month in which we celebrate the resurrection, we turned to what it means to “Follow in His Steps.” Christ reminds us that we, the church, are His bride. Are you “Rehearsing for the Big Event”? As we practice and prepare, we undergo a “Transformation.”
During the second half of the year, we looked to scriptural and everyday examples that can say, “Follow Me, As I Follow Christ.” When we do so effectively, we enter into “Disciple Training,” but since that training is riddled with mistakes, also known as learning opportunities, we question: “Practice Makes Perfect?”
Therefore, to finish the year strong, we circled back to our primary emphasis by centering on “Wise Woman Practices,” even demonstrated and discussed in a trilingual virtual event. Through the month of November, during which many practice the spiritual discipline of giving thanks, we “Practiced Thanksgiving.” And then, to finish out the year, we have looked to “Wise Women in Action” as our inspiration in preparation for the new year to come.
Each of these topics has been rooted in faith—a faith we have been putting into practice.
Thank you to our faithful readers, to those who respond with encouragement and feedback, and to those who share these posts with others. It is our prayer that you have been encouraged and equipped in your spiritual walk—to grow closer to God and one another. May we continue to put these things into practice like wise women who build their houses on the Rock and also “Bear Fruit” (Jn 15), our theme for 2026.
