Pruning the Dream

I just love beautiful and unusual gardens. When we travel to foreign countries, I make sure famous gardens are included in our itinerary. I fondly remember some of them – Huntington in California, Botanic Gardens in Singapore, my favorite Cockington Green with its miniature buildings and gardens in Canberra.

I marvel at the exquisite scenery created by beautiful blooms and well-shaped topiaries. Ironically, I have a brown thumb and I’ve killed every plant I’ve tried to take care of. Good thing my mother has a green thumb so I still get to enjoy looking out to a lush garden with several fruit bearing trees while savoring my meals.

In yesterday’s talk at the Feast, “Increase Harvests” of the current series The Force, I was reminded that the gardens I love to look at didn’t just happen. There were gardeners who watered, fertilized and most especially pruned the plants into the beautiful, bountiful things that they are.

I mentioned pruning in particular because this is key to the abundant harvest and artful shapes. Imagine topiary with wayward branches – not a pretty sight. Or a tree with overcrowded leaves that block life-giving sunlight. Without the sun and room to grow, it can’t bear that many fruits.

So pruning is important if we want beauty and abundance. It’s the same with our life. Our Divine Gardener takes away the things that are bad for us or that distract us from becoming the best we can be.

When I heard the talk, I recalled a Caring Group friend’s situation. She had asked me for advice about her career shift. Having her own business had been her heart’s desire for quite some time but she couldn’t let go of her employment because it paid her bills.

So the dream remained just that – a dream. Until something happened that forced her to quit her job. More than that, avenues for her to seek another employment were closed.

The first thing that flashed in my mind was that the Lord was leaving only one door open for her. This was the door to the dream she had been praying for. Today, by God’s grace, she has just opened her own business.

Sometimes, when we can’t do it for ourselves the Lord steps in to prune the things that are keeping us from bearing abundant fruit.