Blessings!
Today’s Promise is John 15:2 CJB:
“Every branch which is part of me but fails to bear fruit, he cuts off; and every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes, so that it may bear more fruit.”
Devotion:
I used to hate pruning my grapes. I just hated “hurting” my beautiful plants. They looked so sad and small afterward. How could I get any fruit from such small, hacked-up stubs? It seemed counter-productive to me. But time taught me that the grapes actually love being pruned. They send out bursts of new growth and produce more grapes than I can juice!
I used to hate being pruned, too. God’s cutting away of things I held dear hurt and left me feeling bare and vulnerable. But, with time I’ve learned to rejoice in my pruning, too. Because I’ve witnessed time and time again, the new growth and fruit that comes through my submission to the Master Gardener’s pruning shears. I’ve learned to focus on the Gardener and His promises instead of my pain and loss. He’s a much better gardener than I am–and He prunes with love.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me enough to cut away the parts of me that keep me from producing more good and life-giving fruit. Help me, in Jesus’ name, to meet Your pruning with thanksgiving, knowing that others are depending on the fruit I bear in You. Amen.
Have a victorious day in the Lord!
Rebecca
