Pruning the Pots

I used to be an avid gardener, but now that enthusiasm is confined to just keeping a handful of pots.  But even pots can be a lot of work and this weekend I spent considerable time and effort in pruning them, and in some cases, replanting them all together. Unpruned plants become spindly and unproductive, producing only a few flowers or fruit (as in my tomato plants), so branches need to be trimmed often or sometimes cut back to nubs.

This is what the Potter, the One who fashioned us, must do periodically in order to ensure that what grows in and out of us will make for a good harvest.   And He prunes us through challenges, hardships, and even by allowing difficult people into our lives. 

Everywhere I look these days, I see the Potter at work.  I hardly know one person who is not experiencing some difficulty or another.  Make no mistake, pruning is painful and often seems to diminish us.  But take heart, rewards will follow.  A pruned life is sure to yield increase and become stronger while an unpruned life is usually full of weak and immature fruit.

So embrace your pruning!

Until next week,

Sylvia