The Beauty of Pruning

“Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”

I always thought of pruning with a negative connotation, because I thought if you’re clipping away a branch it’s because it’s useless. I thought of pruning as the clipping away of the dead branches in order for fresh life to grow, but that’s actually not what the text says.

It says that the dead (unfruitful) branches are taken away, and the live branches, the ones that are still producing fruit? Those ones have to be pruned in order that they may continue to bear more fruit.

Think about this in terms of our hearts and lives in Christ. He wants to remove the things in our hearts that are dead and unfruitful. These things don’t benefit us or have a purpose and can actually hinder us as it sucks important attention and energy away from the things that are good for us.

Then, pruning actually happens on living branches that are fruitful. In plants, pruning live, producing branches helps a plant direct its energy toward higher quality fruit, improves sunlight penetration, and increases airflow to prevent disease. It stops overcrowding, and maintains an open, strong structure.

This shifted the way I saw pruning and what the Lord is doing in my life. Why would we hold on to the dead things that don’t produce? They’re dead. Allowing God to remove the dead things, the lies we’ve believed, and unhealthy, unfruitful cycles, mindsets, patterns and beliefs is necessary in order to live. Did you know that if you leave dead branches and leaves on a plant, it actually invites pests, traps fungal diseases, and blocks new growth? So while the plant might not die immediately, it does create entry points for rot and decay that can spread into healthy tissue and kill a plant over time.

Wow! That really puts our discipleship process into perspective. Those lies, mindsets, patterns and beliefs that are not of God actually over time cause more harm, can lead to total decay and produce death in us.

It’s no coincidence that Jesus chose this analogy for the Christian life. As you’re running well with Jesus, and your life is bearing fruit, He will continue to prune out so that more energy is invested in growing higher quality fruit.

I pray this blessed you!

xo, Liz