John 15:1-2 (NIV) “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.”
In these two verses of John, Jesus tells us that He is the true vine and His Father is the gardener. Jesus continues to say that His Father cuts off every branch that does not produce fruit and trims the branches that do produce fruit so they will produce even more. I was reminded of this truth this past weekend as my husband and I began the process of trimming the bushes and cleaning out flower beds to get them ready to plant Spring flowers.
Why do we all (okay most of us anyway) take the time to do this once or twice a year? The answer is simple. To remove the “clutter” and bring some sort of order and color back to into our flower beds. Did you know the same can be said of our lives in Christ. We are all connected to Him, the true vine. God, because of His great love for us, prunes away the “clutter” of our lives so we can produce fruit that will last.
The question becomes… what is cluttering your life? Is it the worry, doubt, anger, bitterness or jealously that is holding you back from being at peace in your circumstances? Is it self-reliance that is keeping you focused on a path YOU want to be on instead of the plan God has mapped out for you?
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