Vine and Branches

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 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. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
"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. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples." John 15:1-8


I was thinking today about pruning.. pruning as a gardener would a rosebush or a tree - when a gardener prunes a tree it means he cuts off branches and twigs in order to speed up the growth process. If the tree were a living thing, I would think the pruning process would be quite painful. after all, one might become rather attached to certian things, and then all of a sudden, the gardener decides that they are no longer aiding in the healthy growth of the plant and takes them away... Could it be that we are in the pruning process? is God getting rid of things in our lives that are no longer good for us and making more room for us to grow? ?

I feel as though my family is going through exactly that. We have become too attached to the things of this world, no longer realizing that they are holding us down, keeping us from a better relationship with God. So we are bieng pruned... the house.. all the junk we've kept in the attic, old memories and photographs, sleds from when we were babies.. PRUNED... There have also been other things in my life that I seem to have been pruned from.. Certian friendships, and habits. Certian places that I no longer go to - no matter how difficult it is to stay away. Things I no longer do that I wish I could... Pruning is no doubt a painful process, but think what a beautiful outcome in the end! ! !

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:19-21

praise god

xoxo