Well, it's not exactly what I expected. Personally, I would have preferred soft words of encouragement and gentle teaching but instead I get a dose of discipline. Ugh!
Wayne Jacobsen paints the picture of a jubilant Spring vineyard, happily and gloriously blooming and shooting sprouts in every direction. What a beautiful sight that must be! But is it really beautiful in the hidden places? Apparently not.
At the base of the plant there are new canes growing, called suckers. Instead of supporting the mature branches, the suckers are actually drawing nourishment away from them, thus impeding the ability of the mature branch to be fruitful. Not only must the farmer cut off the suckers, he must be willing to cut off some small clusters of grapes that have grown from them, allowing the remaining clusters to grow to their full maturity. "The most vital training, however, is that done with the new vines, those just entering their first growing season. The way the farmer trains these young vines will affect their fruitfulness for years to come."-Wayne Jacobsen (In My Father's Vineyard).
Am I ready to have my unproductive shoots trimmed in order that my mature branches may become stronger, even if there may be a few grapes attached to them?
God speaks to me daily through His Word and guides me along the path of fruitfulness. He waters me, floods me with His sunshine and, yes, He prunes away the unproductive shoots in my life. That's how He shows His love to me. Now that's a loving Father!
"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it."-Hebrews 12:11 (NIV).
On the health front:
All is well at 7:00 in the morning on this Lord's Day.
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