OUCH! NO PAIN, NO GAIN
This week, we continue with the pencil analogy to see that for pencils to be useful, they need to be sharpened as they are being used. The fanciest and sleekest pencils will soon lose their efficacy if the wood and graphite are not regularly shaped to keep their tips pointed for the tasks they are applied to. So it’s true that pencils need to be ‘defaced’ to be useful!
The same is true for the well-manicured gardens we love so much. If we’re honest, most of us harbour fantasies of owning perfectly-groomed home gardens the likes of those featured in Homes & Gardens or Architectural Digest, but not many of us are ready for the hard work involved.
God knows only too well what it takes to create a healthy garden. We see in John 15:1-2:
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.
As plants grow, they need regular maintenance for good health, and any gardener worth his salt will tell you that cutting and pruning are basic procedures to keep plants from being overgrown and out of shape. Metaphorically, we are the plants that God tends to with a keen eye to ensure our health, growth and contribution to our communities.
Let’s look at how God’s cutting and pruning are beneficial to our well-being.
CUT OFF THE UNFRUITFUL
Our natural sensation of cutting is one that evokes pain. We want to avoid getting cut at all costs because wounds hurt. However, in Greek, the word for ‘cut’ describes ‘take away’ or ‘lift up’.
Picture a plant that’s thriving with thickening foliage and stems shooting in all directions. Cutting away the dead and overgrown branches will open up space for the plant and improve ventilation and photosynthesis that contribute to fruiting and flowering. Left alone, the plant will eventually turn into a state of overgrowth, suffer nutrient deficiency, as well as problems with pests and disease.
Without God’s loving attention, our lives can evolve into a tangled mass of commitments, unhealthy coping strategies, anxieties, languishing relationships, and worsening well-being. If we know the heart of God who loves us, we will see the deeper meaning of the cutting that we allow Him to carry out in our lives.
Psalm 1:1-3 puts it this way: Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on His law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither - whatever they do prospers.
The longer we endure the thickets of hindrances that keep us from growing fully in our God-given potential, the more we become habituated in a place where we will fail to flourish, and the harder it is for us to return to the state of being productive and fruitful on our own. A plant that fails to thrive will over time attract harmful pests that will eventually destroy it.
In planting, when the good parts are cut off, they are not discarded but have the chance to be reborn in a different place. Likewise, when we allow God to cut away that which is good, He opens up space in our lives for new experiences. We learn to apply ourselves differently when He removes us from familiar routines, and we activate our capacity for empathy in new ways when our attention isn’t constantly blocked by the immediate needs around us.
PRUNED FOR FRUITFULNESS
Gardeners not only have to pick the right tools and right time to carry out their tasks, but they also need to get close to the plants they are working on. There are times when heavy pruning is necessary, and stripping plants bare may seem severe but this will soon be forgotten when new growth comes back out down the road.
In the same way, when we trust God to come in for a closer look, we can expect Him to cut away elements that make our lives overly crowded with little space for growth, attitudes that contribute to unhealthy relationship patterns, or the reliance on activities to distract us from feeling the effects of unfruitfulness in some neglected aspects of our lives. At the same time, we can be sure that God’s cutting will bring growth and changes that only happen when we refuse to let things be.
God wants to free us from the pullback of sin and unhealthy habits and behaviour so that we can live a more fulfilling life. For us, He has promised that when we keep in step with Him, we will have the fruit of the Spirit in our lives which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
Do you know that birds are attracted to plants that are trimmed because it’s easier for them to find nectar without getting caught in overgrown thick thistles. When our lives blossom like fruitful plants, we will also enjoy improved quality of life and relationships!
TRUST THE PROCESS
God also uses different tools to shape the outcomes He desires, working through His Word in the Bible, His Spirit to reveal new things to us, Word-based writings and other people speaking into our lives. God’s cutting and pruning may be agonizing for a short time, but it’s also lastingly redemptive and restores order and things that are lost in the previous state. As such, it’s important to watch our response to His actions especially when we find ourselves resisting the change He brings about, resenting the process of change, and refilling the space He freed up in our lives with additional responsibilities.
God does not cut us off to banish us from His sight. Conversely, as we learn to trust Him, we can trust His pruning and cutting to achieve what we cannot do on our own - inside out.
In the hands of our Chief Gardener, harsh processes bring the greatest rewards. Knowing that His pruning will not destroy us, let’s take a little time to reflect on the questions below:
- Do I hunger for a more fruitful spiritual life?
- Do I desire to move out of spiritual stagnation?
- Am I willing to allow God, the Chief Gardener, to produce fruit in my life, remove hindrances inside and outside that are stifling my spiritual growth and my ability to be fruitful?
1 Gal 5:1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
2 Gal 5:13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love.
3 Gal 5:22-23
