Too Many Suckers
Read:
John 15:1-5
Memorize:
John 15:2 Every branch that beareth fruit, He purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.
How about you?
Are there things in your life that rob you of the ability tobear good fruit? Is there laziness, a bad temper, or grumbling in your life? Ask God to prune those things out, so that the fruit He wants you to bear can grow in your life.
Julie, who was helping her mother in the garden, was puzzled when she saw Mom pinch off several small stems from the tomato vines. "Why are you breaking off parts of the tomato plant, Mom?" Julie asked. "Won't that hurt them?"
"No, I'm just pruning them -- removing the suckers," replied Mom.
"Suckers?" asked Julie. "What are they?"
"Look here," directed Mom, and she reached to the center of a plant. "See this large stem with the blossoms on it?" Julie nodded. "And see this small sprout growing just below the place where that flowering branch joins the main stem?" Julie nodded again. "Well, if we let that sprout grow, it robs the stem with the blossoms of some nutrients. But if we snap the sprout off, bigger and better fruit can develop on that larger stem." Mom snapped the sprout off as she spoke.
"So pruning is good for the plants, right?" asked Julie.
Mom nodded. "It is, and I find it interesting because it's a picture of what God does with us. He helps us get rid of things that keep us from developing good fruit."
Julie laughed. "You make us sound like tomato plants or apple trees or something!"
"God wants our lives to show what the Bible calls the 'fruit of the Spirit,'" said Mom with a smile. "They're things such as love, joy, peace . . . you learned them in Sunday school, didn't you?"
Julie nodded. "Well, how does God help us get rid of the . . . ah . . ." She grinned. "The 'suckers' in our lives?" she finished.
"He uses lots of different methods," Mom replied. "Sometimes he uses parents or teachers to help young people get rid of bad habits. That's why there are rules for you to follow, both at home and at school -- and why there is discipline. God also uses both difficult and pleasant times in our lives to teach us and mold us into the people He wants us to be."
Bear good fruit