Joy Comes from God’s Pruning

God prunes our lives, not because we have done something wrong, but because there was evidence of previous fruit. In the past, our lives had shown signs of life and vibrancy. And while that’s encouraging, God doesn’t want us to stop there. He doesn’t want us to stay the way we were. He wants us to be even more fruitful!

Our intimate Gardener doesn’t work carelessly with us as He sets his shears to the places that need trimming back. He knows exactly where to prune our lives and might never be as close or personal to us as when He is pruning us. And God promises that where there was one branch, now there will be three. Where there was previous fruit, there will now be more fruit.

In these seasons of God’s pruning, we find another attribute of our gardener displayed: His loving care toward us. Not only is God personal and intimate when He is pruning us, but His pruning is actually because of His love for us. Proverbs 3:12 says, “The LORD disciplines the one he loves, just as a father disciplines the son in whom he delights.” Just as my parents disciplined me because they loved me, God disciplines His children because He loves them.

God prunes us, disciplines us, and trains us because He loves us. If He didn’t love us, He wouldn’t prune us. He would just let us live in wild, uncontrolled, and overcommitted ways—so overgrown and unruly that our lives exhibit a total lack of discipline.

Pruning is loving. Our God knows that what we need is not crammed calendars, empty checkbooks, and “run-ragged” hearts. Instead, we need to be pruned. We need to be brought back to a healthy state. We need to be simplified so our roots can deepen.

And it is in these seasons of “simplification” that we experience God in new ways. Our roots come from our salvation and living in Christ Jesus alone. When God prunes us, He is sending our roots of faith deeper. Pruning is for our benefit, creating lives that are rooted in Jesus and that will yield peaceful fruit.

The life of peaceful fruit is not found by overcommitting, overspending, or overextending. Instead, God’s discipline teaches us that He alone satisfies. He instructs our hearts that instead of finding our value in activities, finances, or relationships, He is what nourishes our soul, and He alone is our true joy.