I have also been worried about another garden. The one inside my house. It seems as if we are under attack by all sorts of events and attitudes. Children yelling at parents. Parents yelling at children. Everyone laying their heads down at night feeling frustrated and exhausted from the battle. Producing fruit in this garden will always be more important than what happens in my yard. It seems like this crop is struggling...
" I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine dresser. Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, so that it may bear more fruit" Jn 15:1-2. I am not sure if we are being pruned right now, but it feels like it! I know we are branches that have produced good fruit in the past...I look at my daughters and I see their roots dug deep in the soil of Christ. They have begun their own pruning under the hand of the Vine Dresser...it's hard to watch and wait but I know the harvest is going to be great for them and the people they love and care for.
" I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing" (vs 5) "If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and prove to be my disciples (vs7-8) Jesus goes on to talk about abiding in His love means following his commands...that His joy may be in us and our joy may be full! And to that end, God will be glorified!
What exactly does pruning look like ? I believe pruning looks a lot like being humbled at the hands of God. The tearing down of our pride and our beliefs that somehow we had something spectacular to offer Him. It's good to pruned by a merciful and forgiving God who will not go so far that He kills the plant! What kind of fruit am I hoping not to produce here? It's a lot like tomatoes you get out of season...they might be red and shiny...but they smell and taste like fakes! I don't want kids that go to youth group and church. Ones that are polite and stay out of trouble. That's not enough. I want kids that burn with passion for the love of Christ. Ones that understand what Jesus meant when He said...Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command .(15:13-14). I want fruit that lasts! I know it can only happen if I abide in His word and wait for His gentle hands to trim me up (figuratively and literally would be fine by me). Lord teach me to abide and to sit still while you prune me. Amen.
