As a gardener, I know that right now my garden still needs two things to make it better. More time and more pruning. Both can be tiresome, and the pruning becomes downright painful sometimes.
But prune I do, and I haul away debris by the wheelbarrow load. Shrubs and roses look much improved with all the dead and winter-
frozen branches chopped off and their shape neatly maintained. I trim away old foliage and lightly rake the winter mulch from around the plants. The warm spring sun caresses the dormant stems that remain and coaxes new life from the roots buried deep in the soil.
With a little more time, the shrubs and roses will uncurl tiny green leaves and sprout buds by the hundreds. The new and lavish displays of spring flowers will soon be breathtaking.
But they would not be half so nice if I were to let them grow scraggly and untamed and neglected. The hard pruning I give them is precisely what they need to make them so lovely later.
When God is at work pruning away the outgrown or unnecessary areas of my life, I sometimes cringe away from his hands, away from the blades of the shears he uses. Away from the pain that occurs when I’m required to give up something I still want to keep. Why do I do this when I believe the work he’s doing is for the good of my soul? I know I too need regular pruning to bring new spiritual growth into my heart.
I cringe because all pruning demands a degree of pain. Sometimes it’s a lot, sometimes it’s less, but it always hurts. I’d rather have the flowers, the fruit, the good results without the pruning, and I’d rather have them immediately.
But kindly, gently, God reminds me of the areas in my life that need more light. More pruning. Do I have a harmful attitude that needs to go? Are there sinful places that need to be cut away? And what about my habits? Do any make me uncomfortable when I imagine God examining them?
It will take time, but eventually this kind of pruning also brings the desired results. If it’s uncomfortable now, I must remember that I will bloom again. And the flowers and fruit will be better than ever before.
| Prayer | Reflection |
| Dear God, it hurts when you prune away the overgrown and unnecessary places in my life. I need your help to remember that, in time, this pruning will bloom with new growth and fresh blossoms. | How can I begin to prune a bad habit today? |