Monday, December 14, 2009

Prize-Winning Fruit

Why do I feel slightly more wise this morning? Is it because I'm drinking coffee from my Houghton Class of '99 coffee mug? Nope. I think it's because I'm spending some time in the Word this morning.

Do you ever think about what it takes to raise prize winning fruit? You must start with good seed, fertile soil, and take extra special care of your plants so that they can produce that blue ribbon fruit. But how does the Gardner do it?

In my Bible this afternoon, I read about Jesus teaching his disciples about the Vine and the Branches and it led me to understand more about how God shapes us as we remain in Jesus and allow him to nourish us.

Jesus Teaches about the Vine and the Branches
John 15:1-17 NIV

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cutsoff 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."
Jesus is our vine and we grow as part of him, as his branches. Father God is our gardener. Gardners care for plants. God sees us as an extension of his Son Jesus and he's not only watching to see that we bear fruit he's working to see that we do.

God wants us to draw our nourishment and our strength from Jesus. The Bible says we can't bear fruit unless we remain in the vine (v.4). But, even if we are bearing fruit we still get cut back. He is still going to take his shears to us. And the shears he uses are sharp. Have you ever tried to cut something with a dull knife? If you had, you'd discover that you usually don't get a clean cut. Dull tools make your work harder and if you use them, what you're cutting gets crushed, torn or damaged. Praise the Lord that his tools are sharp! The Bible says God prunes us. Now, Father God the Gardener prunes his branches to direct their growth.

I did some research to find out the reasons why gardeners prune. Here's what one internet site told me:

Any overgrown, or struggling plant will benefit from a little pruning. Even a healthy plant benefits by a trimming from time to time. It doesn't matter whether it's a tree or a shrub, a bush, flowers, or your vegetable plants. They all benefit by pruning and trimming.

With few exceptions, plants can be pruned anytime during the year. Pruning makes your plant look better and feel better too! It allows the plants "support system" to send vital energy and nutrients a smaller area and to newer, more vigorous growth. The result.......a lusher, healthier, and better looking plant!

There are several reasons to prune plants:

To remove dead , weak, or unsightly branches.
To re-invigorate plant growth...new leaves and branches grow faster.
To reshape the plant into a more desirable shape.
To produce denser, bushier appearance.
To thin out growth, providing more air circulation and light.
To limit plant size.
Let's examine these reasons to prune.

"To remove dead, weak, or unsightly branches." If you don't have a pulse, you're nigh on to getting there, or you are spiritually an ugly person, look out! God is coming to garden in your heart.

"To re-invigorate plant growth." If you've been spiritually stagnate and you haven't experienced growth in your life, you better take a good long look in the mirror and think about why that might be. Are you in the Word? Are you praying? Are you in fellowship with other believers? Do you even remember what the vine looks like?

"To reshape the plant into a more desirable shape." You might be growing yourself ugly. You might be shooting out a branch here and another over here and then looking up at God and saying, "How 'bout this Lord?" And God picks up his shears and says, "How about you let me take over and shape you into the image of my Son?"

"To produce denser, bushier appearance." Some people are just throwing shoots off in all directions instead of concentrating on growing strong in a couple of areas. They're spreading themselves too thin. God wants his branches strong so that they can withstand all kinds of weather, so he picks up his shears, and trims us back so that we can grow strong and sturdy in him.

"To thin out growth, providing more circulation and light." Sometimes we're just too darn thick. We are so thick, we're choking ourselves to death. We have too much going on and we're literally killing ourselves. We don't have room to breath, and one thing is pressing on another and nothing is healthy in our lives. God steps in and makes room for that his life-giving light and air to circulate and give us what we need.

"To limit plant size." Finally, God doesn't want us getting to big for our pots or for our flower bed. If we start getting too big for our britches, God prunes us back not just for our own good, but for the good of our neighbors. He doesn't want us to overcrowd, or become malnourished or over-reach our boundaries he has put there for the health of the plant. Wild, untamed plants seem more like weeds than objects of beauty and fruitfulness. God trims us back to limit our size. He knows how big we should be.

If we eventually fail to bear fruit, we get cut off, we are left to wither and then we are thrown into the fire (v.6). I don't know about you, but I think I would rather be cut back than cut off. I'm going to start looking to the vine for nourishment and welcome the Gardner's shears, trusting that what he does in my life is for my growth and benefit. I want to remain in Jesus and trust that the food he provides me with, will help me to bear much fruit, so that one day, the Gardner will see my prize-winning fruit and be proud of me.

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