Our world tells us to move on, level up, escape, or reinvent ourselves as God whispers something far less dramatic:
Stay.
Stay when it would be easier to leave.
Stay when the fruit hasn’t appeared yet.
Stay when obedience feels ordinary and unseen.
Stay is not stagnation.
Stay is abiding.
Jesus says in John 15, “Abide in me, and I in you.” Abiding is about staying connected and remaining rooted even when nothing seems to be happening on the surface. Growth is quiet before it is visible.
Scripture is full of people who stayed:
- Anna stayed in the temple, worshiping and waiting.
- The disciples stayed with Jesus when others walked away.
- The early church stayed faithful under pressure and persecution.
Staying doesn’t mean ignoring change.
It means refusing to abandon what God has asked you to tend.
There are seasons when staying looks like:
- Continuing to pray when answers delay
- Continuing to write when readers are quiet
- Continuing to love when relationships are hard
- Continuing to serve when recognition is absent
Stay is a holy resistance against hurry.
It is faith expressed through presence.
Today, as we step into 2026, perhaps God is not asking you to do something new but to remain faithful in what He has already given you.
Stay with Me.
Stay the course.
Stay awake.
Stay rooted.
Stay focused.
Because those who stay often see God move in ways that only the faithful few ever witness.
Friend, is God asking you to stay?
Until my next post…
Be salty, stay lit.
Rainer Bantau —The Devotional Guy™
You can now find my articles in The Christian Grandfather Magazine.
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© 2026 Rainer Bantau | The Devotional Guy™ | All Rights Reserved
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The Devotional Guy™ 
Amen 🙏
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Of course, I think God will use each of us to help the other in this journey
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How intriguing, Barb. I landed on it through our #Advent2025 collab. It was a theme that ran through many posts.
After having spent the past year healing spiritually and recovering from PTSD and complex bereavement, I naturally began to consider what’s next. Stay in the word that the Holy Spirit gave me, mainly as stay course, stay focused, stay on path.
Thanks for sharing, Barb. I appreciate the additional insight.
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My pleasure
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Throughout the year I make note of possible words for the next year. Then I came across the word “stay” and God impressed upon me that I have been a bit all over the place and I need to relearn how to stay in communication with Him.
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Cool! That will be interesting to see. What caused you to choose it?
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We have the same WOTY! It will be interesting to see how similar and different our journeys are.
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Thanks, Jeff. I’m actually working on a companion post on trust. Trust and light are both excellent words.
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Good word. I’m being led to “trust” this year, even more than I have been, but the word “light” keeps popping up, too.
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🤗👍🙏🏼
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I’m glad, Rosie.
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This one really resonated. ~ Rosie
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My experience has taught me similar lessons, Carol. Thank you for sharing your insights.
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I have a lot of experiencing in change in my life and ministry, but I do know the struggles and blessings that come in staying, when you’re not sure why you must. I think our biggest focus should be on staying focused on Christ and His purposes, whether we end up staying in a physical location or not or with a specific ministry or not. Staying rooted in Him despite the changes is key.
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Yes, I believe so, too. Have you had any experience with it?
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A great word to ponder and practice.
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Thanks for this, Dawn.
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Quite a bit was learned actually. Maybe easier to share the link to what I wrote: https://createdbydeesign.com/2023/05/06/the-stay-dawn-minott/
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This sounds like a wise plan to me, Willie. Abide, trust, stay. Blessings 🙏
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I’m choosing to abide, trust God’s timing, and stay rooted even when growth feels quiet.
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Awesome. Thank you. What insights did you glean from your experience, Dawn? Thanks for sharing your thoughts. 🙏
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Love this!! “Stay” was given to me a few years ago so this is quite relatable.
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