Thoughts for the Day

‘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. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.

(Church in Wales Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

I have a cherry tree that has caused me some problems. Supposedly a patio tree it quickly decided it was a standard tree, so it grew and grew (indeed it felt like Jack's beanstalk), but produced virtually no flowers and thus no cherries. So a friend and I decided to cull it drastically, taking out the branches that were well out of reach and opening up the centre of the tree. This spring it produced hundreds of beautiful flowers and small cherries are growing even as I write. Two week's ago we netted the whole tree and I now expect a wonderful harvest of cherries in due course.

In the paragraph from John's Gospel, above, Jesus uses the most common of plants, the vine, to talk about the disciples producing their own fruit. My cherry tree needed pruning to produce fruit and I had to cut out the unproductive limbs to encourae it's growth. We are like a tree or vine, and St Paul identified our fruit as 'love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control' (Galatians 5.22-23). To continue to grow this fruit though we must stay linked to God through worship and prayer. Warning on the packet: Ask God's help and try working on one or two of the areas you find difficult - perhaps not all at once!

Lord Jesus Christ,
You have said that we cannot bear fruit
unless we abide in You.
Help us to stay linked to You
so that we can grow healthy fruit.
in our life,
and continie to full matiurity.
Amen.