Pruning for the better
Wednesday, February 5
Pruning for the better
He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. John 15:2
In my office, I have a lovely hibiscus plant that, when in full bloom, produces beautiful flowers. Over the summer, however, it wasn’t blooming, and to be honest, it didn’t look very healthy. I tried everything—fertilizer, overwatering, underwatering, even changing its location—hoping to revive it, but nothing worked. After a month of frustration, a colleague suggested, “Why don’t we just prune the stems?” My immediate response was, “No way!” But after a few more weeks of no progress, I reluctantly agreed. To my surprise, pruning indeed saved the plant.
In many ways, we are like that plant. Sometimes, in order to move forward, we must allow God to prune us—cutting off what’s holding us back so that we can bear more fruit.
Gardeners will also understand the need to prune the good plants. Dead wood needs to be cut out of trees and shrubs, and even the good growth needs cutting back to make it more fruitful. Jesus speaks of this in today’s verse: “He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit….” Without divine pruning, our lives will soon become out of order and lose some of their fruitfulness.
Pruning can be painful, but it’s necessary for growth. God, the gardener, works in us to remove what is not bearing fruit and refine what is. Reflect on areas where God may be pruning you to increase your spiritual fruitfulness.
Today, let us ask our Father, who is the Gardener, to be at work in our lives now, showing us any `weeds`, pruning back the good things in our lives to make us even more fruitful, and enabling us to walk in our gifting so we do bear fruit.
Prayer for today: Dear God, please forgive me for neglecting the `garden` of my life. Please show me any `weeds` that I have allowed to grow, and help me to get rid of them. These distractions are robbing me of Your peace. Please help me to be fruitful and not to waste the good things that You have given me. Thank You for Your loving care and for the pruning that leads to greater fruitfulness. Help me to trust Your process and grow in my faith. Amen.