Today, I was outside pruning some bushes that were overtaking my front porch. Why was I doing it? My husband & oldest son, Austin, have offered to take care of it for me, but I had insisted on doing it myself.

I am the true vine, and My Father is the vine dresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” John 15:1-2

I find it to be therapeutic & I enjoy seeing the immediate results we seldom see in life.

As I began carefully choosing which branches to cut & how far down to go, I felt………

the overwhelming sense that the Holy Spirit wanted to teach me something through my bushes & that my life has been carefully and lovingly pruned by my Heavenly Father.

  Soon after salvation over 20 years ago, I began going through many trials in my own life as well as the lives of my family- sicknesses that would last decades, financial distresses, and just the challenges of raising 5 children.

 I realized back then, that if I would allow The LORD, He would uses these things to shape me into the image of His Son.

 If my bushes had emotion & could speak I’m sure they would have objected to my pruning.         “that’s too much!, Don’t do it now, it’s not the right time- wait until Fall.”  I’m sure I have said these same things to my Heavenly Father also. At the beginning, I didn’t realize how much pruning I would need.

 Look at the photo of the pile of branches- can you believe that is from just 1 bush!  So also the fire (trials) in my life have brought the dross (sin, ungodliness) to the top to be skimmed off.

  The LORD removes these things through repentance & His leadership in these areas. Many times I didn’t even realize it was there until the fire was applied to my life.

  My goal for my bushes was to trim the branches closer to the trunk.  Sometimes we get so focused on doing good things for Jesus that we grow out too far from Him.  Yes, we have foliage at the end, but there is not a heart afire w/ intimate devotion to the person of Jesus.

As I finished pruning the bush I thought how my children would comment how ugly the bush is now because I trimmed so much. But in my eyes it wasn’t ugly, I knew it would come back and fill in, it would grow foliage closer to the trunk. 

After being cut back to half it’s size it would now preform for the purpose for what we planted it & not consume everything around it.

The truth is that even though my Father prunes me because he loves me, in the midst I feel like a bare, ugly little bush. It’s during these times I have been humbled & must go to my Father and ask how He sees me.

“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the LORD, nor faint when you are reproved by Him; for those the LORD loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son whom He receives.”  Hebrews 12:5-6.

…He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.

All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who are trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” Hebrews 12:10-11

LORD, we ask for grace that we may see our pruning for our good. That we would yield to your leadership- your way of thinking and doing things that we may we shaped into the image of Christ and bear much fruit for your glory.  In Jesus name. Amen 

Nesha Tullis