This time of the year when all the shrubs and flowers are in bloom takes me back to an event that happened several years ago,   when Jon decided to prune (cut back) our front yard shrubs.  When he pruned them, HE REALLY PRUNED them, if you know what I mean.  A man with electric hedge sheers can be so dangerous.  You guessed it, they were just stumps by the time he finished. Not one leaf was left.   He tried to reassure me that in the coming spring, they would be even more beautiful.  I hate to admit it, but when spring arrived….all the new growth on those old shrub stumps was fresh, thick, and gorgeous.

Would you say, that one of the most difficult things for us to accept is when God has to cut away (or prune) unnecessary hindrances from our lives so we can be more like Jesus?   As in horticulture, Spiritual pruning is always done with God’s purpose in mind.  It is used to modify direction or to train.  Do you know that God uses adversity for His purpose in our lives?  As soon as our mind gets snagged on the difficulties, we must take them directly to our heavenly Father, as He knows just how to handle them.  He is always saying, “Come!”   Do we really deep down know that He has a greater good in mind when He allows trouble to come?

We can rejoice in Psalm 1:6: “I am confident of this one thing, He that began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ.”

Joy,

Phyllis