Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Easter
Don’t let the title of this reflection frighten you! I’ve not gone off the deep end into some sort of horror genre today. Rather, I think the world of arboriculture and its “4 D’s” can give us some understanding of pruning that we can apply to our spiritual lives. Just as trees, bushes, and plants need to be pruned from time to time in order to thrive, so also do we need to submit to God’s pruning in our lives. Jesus tells us that God prunes us so that we might become more fruitful. Let us pray it be so today, as we submit to our Heavenly Father, the loving and attentive Vine Grower.
People in the field of arboriculture, the cultivation of trees and shrubs, talk about the “4 D’s” when it comes to pruning: Dead, Diseased, Damaged, or Deranged. These categories are a way to remember what to prune so that the tree or bush will be healthier and more fruitful. The first D is easy and obvious – remove what is dead. If it’s dead, get rid of it. To identify what is diseased sometimes takes more careful observation. The diseased branch is cut back at least 6 inches into the healthy wood. Damaged branches make the tree/shrub more vulnerable to disease and/or pests. It’s recommended that damaged branches be pruned back to a bud on a young stem, back to another branch, or removed entirely. When branches grow, they often cross and rub against each other – this is the 4th D, deranged. The one doing the pruning chooses one branch to keep and removes the other offending branches.
Jesus says to us, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you.” God’s Word, the Bible, is an instrument of pruning in our lives. Any time we read the scriptures or hear them proclaimed is an opportunity to allow the Word to cut away any dead, diseased, damaged, or deranged part of us.
Any sin is a form of death to us. Let us confess our sins today, repent, and ask God to remove the dead branches. God assures us, “as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12). Let us run to God in contrition so that he can cut off the dead branches and fling them away as far as east is from west!
Any branch with life left in it, the Father prunes. Sometimes those branches have sections that are diseased. Let us examine our lives today. What are the areas of unhealthiness, whether spiritual, emotional, physical, relational, mental? Let us name those and ask our Good, Good Father to gently remove the areas of disease and heal and restore us. In actual pruning, the diseased part is cut way back into the healthy stalk. I find myself in this stage of pruning right now. It’s incredibly painful but necessary. I’m trying to accept the pain with joy, knowing that greater health and fruitfulness is coming!
Branches that are damaged by trauma or severe natural conditions are more susceptible to disease or pests. Sometimes circumstances of life knock us down and we feel beat up and defeated. It’s in those times that we are more susceptible to the attacks of the enemy or of our own negative self-talk. Sometimes we adopt unhealthy practices that are self-defeating. Let us examine our lives for this type of damage today and ask our Heavenly Father to prune us such that these parts of us can come back to life.
Deranged branches grow in a tangle. If we’re not careful, our lives can become so intertwined with worldly or secular pursuits that we forget who we are as children of God and followers of Christ. Today, let us examine our lives and ask our Father to remove any worldview, any philosophies, beliefs, or any way of life that is contrary to the pursuit of Christ.
Jesus continues, “Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.” The command to remain resounds throughout today’s Gospel. We can be assured that despite all the areas of our lives that need pruning, we find our life in Christ. Let us not be discouraged by the sin and unhealthiness that we recognize in our lives but let us submit to the careful pruning of our loving Vine Grower. Even in the midst of our sin and yuck we are never far from God when we choose to remain in Christ.
Elizabeth Wells