[Newsletter] Daily Devotional

[littlejane at rgcministries.com]

The Pruning


Read: John 15:1-11


Every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  
~ John 15:2


In every vineyard, a vinedresser prunes the branches so they will  
produce more fruit. In a spiritual sense, our heavenly Father must  
deal with us in a similar way at times ? by pruning our lives. It  
isn?t only the dead branches that have to go, but sometimes even the  
living and vital ones must be cut back so that better and more  
bountiful fruit may grow.

Many different circumstances may serve as a pruning knife in the hands  
of the Master Vinedresser. It may be the rejecting gesture, the unkind  
word, or no word at all. It could be the frustration of living in a  
constant state of noise and confusion, with daily duties and no chance  
to find a quiet place to call our own. Or it might be waiting for God  
to intervene when everything seems hopeless and we have no friends to  
help us.

But the pruning knife is guided by a loving set of hands. The Master  
Vinedresser knows what we can take, and He knows what we can become ?  
more loving, joyful, tranquil, tolerant, kind, dependable, gentle,  
poised ? stronger and better than we are today.

We must not shrink from the knife but trust the hand that holds it.  
Our Father in heaven has a purpose ? to produce good fruit in us.

~ David Roper

The Master is seeking a harvest
In lives He?s redeemed by His blood;
He seeks for the fruit of the Spirit,
And works that will glorify God.

~ Lehman


Thought For The Day:
Fruitbearing + Pruning = More Fruit