Pruning

 

John 15:2

He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.

There are a few reasons why vinedressers prune their vineyards. Pruning helps maintain the desired shape and structure of the vine, preventing uncontrolled growth. By removing some growth, pruning concentrates the vine's energy into fewer, larger, and better-quality bunches of grapes. Then also it can improve bud fruitfulness, meaning that more buds will produce fruit-bearing shoots, and removing diseased or weak wood helps prevent the spread of disease and improves overall vine health. 

We can certainly see why Jesus likened this process to us as believers being branches in Him as the True Vine. We also need to be prevented from growing wildly in all directions, instead of upward towards Him alone. Our energy also needs to be directed into better quality fruit, and we need to have fruit-bearing branches originating from even more areas in our lives until we are fully submitted to Him. Finally, those branches that are inviting disease and inner turmoil into our lives need to be removed so that we can be healthy vines in our King’s vineyard!

It might seem to us as if we are just constantly losing things during this pruning process - some things naturally disappear from our lives; some things are taken away – and indeed, many of these losses cause us heartbreak and sorrow. But here’s the thing, the purpose of pruning is not to harm, but to allow new and better growth. Our losses therefore are not meant to harm us in any way, but to make us better and stronger, to bring us closer to the perfect image that God wants to create in us.

Do not linger in past seasons; do not yearn for friendships that have clearly ended for now; do not keep looking over your shoulder to the experiences that were such highlights on your journey so far and continually long to return to them all again.

Instead, relish the good things from your past as blessings from God and thank Him for each and every one of them; keep those precious friendships as good memories to sustain you as you grow older; and keep on reminding yourself of God’s promise to let everything in your life work for your good (Romans 8:28: "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.") as you step out into the new that He is inviting you to.

Pearls to ponder:

Proverbs 4:25 Look straight ahead and fix your eyes on what lies before you is good advice for us on our life’s journey. As God works in our lives to prune us for better growth in Him, let us embrace this process and let go of things that might hinder us in our new season, those things that we cling to because we would rather hold on to the familiar than venture out with God into unfamiliar territory!

Vinedresser