Mental Wanderings

Do you ever let you mind wander when you are doing chores? I do. My wanders a lot during some tasks. Today, I was pruning blackberry bushes early this afternoon. As I snipped off dead branches and pulled up weeds, some things occurred to me.

The first thing that occurred to me is that we also go through pruning. The dead branches on a blackberry bush only make it harder to harvest the fruit. If you aren't careful, that deadness can spread. Jesus said, "I am the vine, and My Father is the vineyard keeper. Every branch in Me that does not produce fruit He removes, and He prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit" (John 15:1-2, HCSB). When we get the dead branches out of our lives, we, most likely, will see an increase in fruitfulness. Dead branches are the people, activities, and private sins we allow to draw us away from God.

Another thing that occurred to me is that the presence of sin in the world means that we will have to work hard and endure pain, if we are to enjoy the fruit of a well lived life. I love blackberries. I have worked to maintain the wild bushes in my yard. I enjoy being able to go out, right behind my house and harvest blackberries in the summer. But I seriously doubt that many have ever harvested a large amount of blackberries without also having to doctor cuts and pick thorns out of their skin. The blackberry, in all its yummy goodness, does not come without some discomfort (even tame blackberries purchased in a store put a thorn in your wallet).

It also occurred to me that crabgrass is a violent, invasive killer.  Its roots grow deep and wide, and entangle themselves in the root systems of more useful plants. As I worked to uproot the crabgrass growing around my blackberry bushes, I couldn't keep from thinking about Jesus' parable about the wheat and the tares. The tares were weeds that an enemy had sown. Jesus warned against pulling them up, for fear it would damage the wheat. They were allowed to grow together until the harvest, and then the tares were gathered into bundles and burned. Some of my careless weeding cost me precious blackberry plants, so I adjusted my strategy. The plants that survive will be stronger in the long run, since they aren't competing with the crabgrass any more. It reminded me that discipline must be practiced wisely, carefully, and with a gentle hand.

What about you, where do your mental wanders take you? What truths are you confronted with? What wisdom is passed on? Let me know about it.

Pruning

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit" (John 15:1-2, ESV).

There are four large trees growing in my yard.  Three are oaks; the fourth tree is a beech that suffered great damage during last winter's ice storm.  Today, a crew came and began the process of trimming the trees. At various times today, I would look out and see the workers surrounded by piles of limbs that looked waste deep. In fact, by this time tomorrow, the beech tree will be no more.  The trees that have been trimmed look so naked.  When I saw the first oak fully trimmed, I was a bit alarmed.  But several people I have talked to assure me come spring, the trees will bounce back.

As I thought about the trees, these verses began running through my mind.  I began to ask myself if Jesus is speaking of chastisement when he speaks of pruning.  It seems that Jesus' metaphor is speaking about cleansing.  John 15:3 leads us to believe that cleansing is being suggested.  Thus, Jesus is stating that the fruitless will be cut off, and even the fruitful will require "pruning" to continue to bear fruit.

The passage seems to suggest that those who profess to know Christ, yet live in contradiction to that profession will be cut off and burned up (see John 15:6).  To borrow from John's terminology, those who claim to walk in the light, but live in the darkness are liars (see 1 John 1:5-6).  Those who profess to know Christ and walk in that light will still face cleansing at the hands of the Vinedresser.

When we consider the New Testament emphasis on having joy in difficult situations, I think it is safe to conclude that suffering, through trial or tribulation, persecution or rejection, would constitute as "pruning" (see Roman 5:3-5; James 1:2-4).  We need to endure hardship as chastisement, and remember that the Lord disciplines those he loves (see Heb. 12:5-11).  Thus, pruning, while unpleasant, is ultimately for our benefit, and demonstrates God's love for us.  When God is using a trial to cleanse of some sin, we may feel exposed and barren, but God is really preparing us for a greater harvest.

So as I look out in my office window and see a great expanse of sky where a thick cluster of limbs used be, I can't help but think about my life.  I am thinking about past prunings I have experienced.  I am wondering what kind of prunings the future will hold.  My mind is also thinking about friends of mine who are in the Vinedresser's hand right now.  He is cutting out the dead and decaying parts of their life, shearing away at the overgrowth, thinning out the competing branches.  All of this he does so they will bear more fruit to his glory. It's painful to watch, and the initial results leave you holding your breath, but in time it rightness of the process will be displayed in the fruit it produces.  The Vinedresser always knows what he's doing, we just have to keep trusting him, even when it seems spring is a long way off.