Just a Trim, Please
1"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He
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� 5"I am the vine; you are the
branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will
bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing�.
John 15:1-2,5 (NIV)
1"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He
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� 5"I am the vine; you are the
branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will
bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing�.
John 15:1-2,5 (NIV)
We have a great apple tree in our front yard. In recent years, it has been a beautiful
thing; perfectly shaped and thick with glossy leaves. It has yielded a yearly crop of
apples, too. It has been so attractive, standing alone on its patch of grass, that it looks
artificial.
However, there was a problem with our perfect tree. Every year it got a little bushier
and the apples got a little smaller. Were we concerned? Not really, because the tree was
so pretty. But as the years went by, I noticed that it took more apples to make a pie and
I realized that not only were the apples shrinking, I was harvesting less fruit each year.
What could be wrong? The tree looked great, so why were the apples positively puny?
The answer came from the pages of my gardening reference – that tree desperately
needed a good pruning!
So we pruned. I was amazed at the number of healthy-looking branches that we
removed as we followed the plan illustrated in the gardening book. When we were
done, the tree looked pretty bad. The thicket of leafy branches had given way to a tree
with a bowl-shaped center laid open to the sun. I fretted over the tree, thinking that we
had harmed it by pruning away all those branches, but I was proven wrong when July
arrived and the tree was covered with huge apples.
When we consider the pruning process as it is mentioned in the Bible, we often think of
the verses in John 15, which refer to removing dead or unproductive branches. When
applied to our own lives, it isn’t hard to accept the lopping off of bad habits, harmful
relationships or dead-end attitudes. But there’s more to those verses. Fruit-bearing
branches are trimmed, too! When we apply that concept to our lives, it is a scary
prospect, but we need not be afraid. The master gardener, our heavenly Father, does
not remove our “branches� capriciously, nor does He err as he shapes our lives.
Now, I have no problem understanding the need for regular pruning for our local, state
and national governments – dead wood and overgrowth are impediments to vigorous
leadership. And I even understand that pruning is necessary for the various ministries of
our church and school, for they will certainly be stronger afterwards. But then God
decided that I needed pruning.
You see, my life had begun to resemble that apple tree. It was getting bushier and
bushier with job responsibilities, family obligations, hobbies, chores, and so on. My life
looked pretty good and I was even bearing fruit, so I was shocked and angry when my
good health, a branch that I deemed vital, was pruned away along with some branches
that I was quite comfortable with losing.
Confused, I took my questions to the Lord in prayer and I was led to this conclusion:
sometimes elements of life which we consider vital actually obstruct the Son from
penetrating to the very heart of our lives. Additionally, when God chooses to reshape
us, he is preparing us to produce a bumper crop of His fruit and thus experience deeper
joy as we serve Him in our new form. So don’t fear the pruning process but instead
rejoice in the prospect of renewed vigor in your Son-filled life!
©2008 Elizabeth Williams
thing; perfectly shaped and thick with glossy leaves. It has yielded a yearly crop of
apples, too. It has been so attractive, standing alone on its patch of grass, that it looks
artificial.
However, there was a problem with our perfect tree. Every year it got a little bushier
and the apples got a little smaller. Were we concerned? Not really, because the tree was
so pretty. But as the years went by, I noticed that it took more apples to make a pie and
I realized that not only were the apples shrinking, I was harvesting less fruit each year.
What could be wrong? The tree looked great, so why were the apples positively puny?
The answer came from the pages of my gardening reference – that tree desperately
needed a good pruning!
So we pruned. I was amazed at the number of healthy-looking branches that we
removed as we followed the plan illustrated in the gardening book. When we were
done, the tree looked pretty bad. The thicket of leafy branches had given way to a tree
with a bowl-shaped center laid open to the sun. I fretted over the tree, thinking that we
had harmed it by pruning away all those branches, but I was proven wrong when July
arrived and the tree was covered with huge apples.
When we consider the pruning process as it is mentioned in the Bible, we often think of
the verses in John 15, which refer to removing dead or unproductive branches. When
applied to our own lives, it isn’t hard to accept the lopping off of bad habits, harmful
relationships or dead-end attitudes. But there’s more to those verses. Fruit-bearing
branches are trimmed, too! When we apply that concept to our lives, it is a scary
prospect, but we need not be afraid. The master gardener, our heavenly Father, does
not remove our “branches� capriciously, nor does He err as he shapes our lives.
Now, I have no problem understanding the need for regular pruning for our local, state
and national governments – dead wood and overgrowth are impediments to vigorous
leadership. And I even understand that pruning is necessary for the various ministries of
our church and school, for they will certainly be stronger afterwards. But then God
decided that I needed pruning.
You see, my life had begun to resemble that apple tree. It was getting bushier and
bushier with job responsibilities, family obligations, hobbies, chores, and so on. My life
looked pretty good and I was even bearing fruit, so I was shocked and angry when my
good health, a branch that I deemed vital, was pruned away along with some branches
that I was quite comfortable with losing.
Confused, I took my questions to the Lord in prayer and I was led to this conclusion:
sometimes elements of life which we consider vital actually obstruct the Son from
penetrating to the very heart of our lives. Additionally, when God chooses to reshape
us, he is preparing us to produce a bumper crop of His fruit and thus experience deeper
joy as we serve Him in our new form. So don’t fear the pruning process but instead
rejoice in the prospect of renewed vigor in your Son-filled life!
©2008 Elizabeth Williams
