Optimized For Growth
By Kristen Terrette
“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.” John 15:2
Plants die around me. Inside the house. Outside the house. It doesn’t matter where, if I’m in charge of keeping them alive, they will wilt and wither away. However, there was this one time, this one particular summer, when my husband and I planted a large garden with many vegetables, but mostly rows and rows of string green beans.
Beans spout and shoot up quickly like a vine. They latch onto anything in their way and soon actual beans start to grow off this tangled mess! I was amazed!
But having a hefty garden took a ton of work. Every. Single. Day. I had to pull weeds so there’d be room for the beans and other vegetables. The crops had to be cut off at just the right time. Anything dead or eaten by bugs needed to be clipped away. And with our Georgia heat, I had to water and nourish the plants constantly.
My gardening victory provide a vivid picture of how Jesus and God the Father work to prune and cleanse us. It tells the story of Jesus, God the Son, as our precious vine. And God the Father as our Gardener. I think of them working together to nourish each and every bean. If one is diseased, scarred by bugs, or withering without water, the Gardener will cut it off, making room for the healthy parts of the plants to thrive, but He will also prune those that are producing a harvest so that they “will be even more fruitful.”
Are you a branch that is bearing fruit? Are you living a life that brings glory and honor to God? If not, turn away from your old life, submit to the Vine and Gardener and begin to thrive and live as a healthy, fruit-bearing branch.
Kristen Terrette holds a Master's degree in Theological Studies and served as a Children's Ministry Director for five years. She cherishes her Southern roots and currently lives forty-five minutes outside of Atlanta, GA. She’s following her dream by writing Christian fiction during the day and being a wife and mom come early afternoon when the family arrives home. She serves on the Wholly Loved Ministries team, serves at her local church on the women's leadership and teaching team, and writes for Crosswalk.com. To see her blog and novels, check out her website at www.kristenterrette.com.
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Originally published Thursday, 23 March 2023.
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