A Lent of Fruitful Pruning

By The Revd. Preb. Nigel Guthrie

Jesus said “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit.”
John chapter 15 verse 2

 I spent very nearly 30 years living in vicarages and all of them had decent size gardens. But more than half of that time was spent at Crediton where we had a really large plot. It was a great privilege to have space for our young sons to run around and play games. We had some wonderful gatherings there and even hosted a wedding. Our free-range chickens enjoyed it too! 

But it all took a lot of maintenance. A ride-on mower was needed to cut the grass and I spent many hours cutting back the hedges and trying to tame the brambles!  So, it was with some relief that, in retirement, we found ourselves with a much smaller garden. And part of the delight of that is that we enjoy the shrubs, flowers and vegetables without too much pressure. 

Yet the need to prune is always there. We inherited several shrubs that were too large and, not being an expert gardener, I felt a little nervous cutting them back severely.  But such attention is necessary if plants are to remain healthy and the right size for the garden. And when we had apple trees in previous gardens it was obvious from year to year that quite serious pruning was necessary if they were to remain fruitful. 

Lent is a good time to look at the priorities in our lives and to consider if there are things that should be cut back.  True, we should always keep our lives under review. But, like pruning in the garden, it is good to set aside certain times to focus on it and to stand back from our day-to-day busyness to get some perspective on our lives. 

I hope that you will be able to find some time for this during Lent, and that God will give you a clear vision of what you might need to lose, in order to become more fruitful for him.  As Jesus said, it was a process that God will do anyway. So why don’t we get ahead and ask for his guidance and help in working with him on it?

I wish you a good Lent of fruitful pruning.