I am the true vine, and my Father is the vineyard keeper. He removes any of my branches that don’t produce fruit, and he trims any branch that produces fruit so that it will produce even more fruit. - John 15: 1-2 CEB
Most women have struggled with split ends at some point in their lives. Split ends occur when the shaft of your hair splits into two or more segments, usually at the tip (think about a rope that's unraveling at the end). When dealing with split ends you basically have two options: Option 1: You can allow the hair to continue to grow with split ends and try to treat it. However, any subsequent hair growth will likely be thwarted because the split ends will damage your hair. Option 2: You can trim your hair, getting rid of the split ends, so that your hair can grow healthily. However, the trim may require more of your hair being cut than desired.
Whether a woman chooses Option 1 or 2 depends on if she is more concerned about length or the healthiness of her hair. To be honest, I’ve chosen both options over my lifetime. The truth is the only real way to get rid of split ends is to cut them off. Because once a hair is split, there's nothing that can magically fuse the pieces back together again forever. To have more healthy hair growth you have to trim it.
Likewise, Jesus trims any branch that produces fruit so it will produce even more fruit. The trimming isn’t to harm us or take away things we love (like our hair length), but it’s to enable us to walk in our full purposes. I love the way John 15:2 is presented in the Amplified Bible, which states “… and every branch that continues to bear fruit, He [repeatedly] prunes, so that it will bear more fruit [even richer and finer fruit].” In the plant world, pruning is preventative maintenance that shapes the plant and encourages new growth. In other words, undergoing pruning does not necessarily mean that anything is wrong, it actually means you are bearing fruit, which is a good thing. Look at the amplified version above again, it states that every branch that CONTINUES to bear fruit God REPEATEDLY prunes so that it will bear even richer and finer fruit. It may not feel like it, look like it, or seem like, but pruning is for your good, and the good of others who will encounter you as you walk in your purpose.
According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, “prune” means to (a) to cut off or cut back parts of for better shape or more fruitful growth, and (b) to reduce especially by eliminating superfluous matter. Superfluous is defined as: (1A): exceeding what is sufficient or necessary: EXTRA (1B): not needed: UNNECESSARY; (2) obsolete: marked by wastefulness: EXTRAVAGANT. The New Testament Greek Lexicon, provides that “prune" comes from Greek word Kathairo that means to cleanse of filth and impurities. In order for us to bear more fruits, God has to cut back and cleanse things in our lives, and within us, that are extra, unnecessary, and extravagant. What extra, unnecessary, and extravagant thing in your life is keeping you from all God has called you to be?
Holding onto extra weight, that serves no godly purpose, weighs on us and slows us down. In this life, sometimes we have to walk and sometimes we have to run. This is why we are to “…throw off any extra baggage, get rid of the sin that trips us up, and fix our eyes on Jesus, faith’s pioneer and perfecter” (Hebrews 12:1-2 CEB). If you’re like me, when you’re traveling you may tend to overpack for “just in case” moments that may require additional ensembles. However, in God we don’t need “just in case” moments. As long as we are abiding in Him, He will provide us with all that we need. I hate to burst your bubble, but there is no plan B when you are truly abiding in God.
We cannot run in the fullness of purpose with all that extra and unnecessary baggage, just like all those splits ends that we are trying to keep because we don’t want to lose our hair length, and all those unhealthy relationships we hold onto because we have history and we don’t want to feel like we’ve lost all that time. Let me tell you this, God replaces anything He takes away. It doesn’t always mean it will be replaced with something better or more, but it does mean that God will replace what you lost with the best thing you need at that time. Whatever God prunes will free you to love Him with your whole heart and soul (see Deuteronomy 30:6).
It is important to know that pruning can take time. In the tree world, they have this thing called rejuvenation pruning. describes rejuvenation pruning like this: “Rejuvenation pruning involves severely cutting back trees to reshape them and inspire new, healthy growths. Sometimes it takes two or three years to remove all of the branches, as you should prune no more than one-third of the old branches each year to avoid stressing trees” (SFGATE Homeguide, https://homeguides.sfgate.com/tree-care-after-cutting-limbs-44674.html). Notice that John 15 doesn’t state the length of time that the pruning will take. It can be 6 hours, 2 days, 7 weeks, 4 months, or 3 years. However, you can rest assured that God knows how much and how little to prune. He is not going to do anything so quickly, or take so long, that it damages you more than helps you.
After undergoing the pruning process, the next step is recovery. Immediately, after a tree has been pruned it needs a thorough helping of water to help it recover. You should continue watering regularly, increasing water during droughts to prevent water stress, as the water supports the new shoots (in our case new fruit) that develop after pruning (see https://homeguides.sfgate.com/tree-care-after-cutting-limbs-44674.html). Just like the tree needs a steady supply of water, we need a steady supply of Jesus. Jesus is the Living Water (John 4:14) and He instructs us to abide in Him, the Vine. So, after we have been pruned, immediately we need a thorough helping of Jesus to help us recover, especially during rough times (like dealing with a COVID-19 pandemic) to prevent stress and support the growth of the new fruit, dreams, and purposes we gained.
Since the John 15 states, we will be repeatedly pruned it is only fitting that we have to continually abide in Jesus (the Vine) so we can yield fruit. When we abide in Him and maintain a steady supply of Living Water we are like a tree planted by streams of water enabling us to bear more fruit, prosper, and stand strong in any circumstance. He makes in this clear in Psalm 1:1-3 and Jeremiah 17: 7-8.
Psalm 1:1-3: “Blessed is the one … whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers”.
Jeremiah 17:7-8: “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”
When parents repeat themselves it’s because they want to make sure the child understands. God basically repeats himself in the scriptures above because He wants to make sure you understand that when you trust and abide in Him, HE GOT YOU. Yes, you will have to undergo some cutting and pruning. Yes, it will be uncomfortable. Yes, it may mean letting go of things, dreams, goals, habits, and people you want. Yes, you will be stretched into unfamiliar territory so the fruit, gifts, and strengths you never knew were inside of you could be revealed. And yes, it also means that you will experience God and life in a way that you have never experienced before…that you will walk in your purpose with boldness, strength, joy, peace, and authority. But it’s up to you. You have to ask yourself is keeping the split ends and holding the extra and unnecessary baggage worth your purpose? The choice is yours: Trim or nah?
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