Sprout

He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. (John 15:2 NLT)

A couple weeks ago I wrote a post about how The Lord was leading me through a season of pruning. The purpose of the pruning is so that "the branches that do bear fruit...will produce even more."(John 15:2 NLT)

This has not been a fun or comfortable process.  Sometimes the branches that get clipped are ones we are really attached to.  I've had to make a personally painful decision on something I've put a lot of time and energy into. Even though I see tremendous benefits in the long run it still hurts.

But it's not about me. It's about Him and building His kingdom.

At our apartment in Vero Beach Florida we planted a bush that grew deep purple flowers. Over time the bush grew until it exceeded the size we wanted it to be. On a visit my mother cut down the plant within a few inches of the ground. She promised that it would grow back and eventually would need to be trimmed again. While the the tall green leaves grew back over time, those purple flowers never returned.



One of the fears of going through the pruning process is that some of what is cut off gets thrown into the fire never to return. Even though we may like some of those branches, they might be holding us back from what we are to become.

It feels like there has been a lot of cutting going on. Until today there hasn't been much sign if life. Until today. A sprout has appeared. A bud of hope showing that what John 15:2 says will really come about. Fruitfulness.

While there has been comfort in the thought of what the end of this process will look like, it's encouraging to see some beginning signs of life. To hear things you have been speaking to others start to come out of their own mouths. Replication. Growth.

It's overwhelming to see how far there is still to travel in this journey. But those signs of life induce hope and motivation to carry on. 

Keep an eye out for those sprouts. 

This time the dove returned to him in the evening with a fresh olive leaf in its beak. Then Noah knew that the floodwaters were almost gone. (Genesis 8:11 NLT)