The Naked Nine
Last fall, we had a row of pear trees pruned. Bradford Pear trees have a beautiful pear shape and become covered with tiny white petals for a short time in the Spring. They are stunning to see in all their glory AND they have problems. They are fragile; they can split as they grow, making them prime targets for southern storms. Besides, they spread indiscriminately, and they stink. We paid a tree trimmer to reduce them to the tune of, "There are a lot more things I'd like to spend that kind of money on!" “Why did you keep them?” you may ask, because in landscaping and life, sometimes it’s best to tend to what you already have.
For the past year, I have observed these trees. At first, they were completely naked, all nine of them. As the clothed trees were basking in the glory of losing their leaves last fall, the nine stood bare. Their stark state continued through months—until Spring. While all the other trees were popping with appealing new growth, the naked nine slowly grew leaves in the most awkward directions. By Mid-summer, the trees were growing sucker branches, which I promptly trimmed so that they would continue to grow up…not out and because we do not want more of these trees! Now, full circle to when the trees were first stripped-down. They look well cared for, cultivated, and groomed. They stand healthy, growing in the right direction, and not weighed down by too much growth.
There is another row of pear trees in our neighborhood not pruned last fall, or ever. Somebody likely planted them around the same time as ours. I have observed them too. Some are big and tall and crowded. Some split in two. Some are gone. None of them look cared for or healthy.
Why am I writing about trees? I am one of those deep thinking ponderers who pays attention to how the physical world often parallels our inner worlds: our mind, will, and emotions and how we can connect on a spiritual level. Last fall, I sensed that a season of pruning was coming. It did not make sense to me at the time. Things were flourishing. Vocationally I was celebrating ten years of growing a business. There was abundant fruit; there were changed lives. Relationally the fruit of weeding, planting, and consistent cultivation was evident. Spiritually God was refocusing me on what He has called me specifically to do. I also had clear direction on things that would be ADDITIONS, not a word that I would use regarding the concept of pruning. Even so, the idea lingered. I followed what I thought God was telling me, cutting back on some things and adding a few, and then, 2020! We can say that nothing could have prepared us for 2020, and although I would never have imagined how our lives would change, I have to say that I felt oddly anticipatory. The pruning that God was doing in me made sense in vocational, relational, spiritual, and practical ways. I leaned in. Being cut back is never fun. It feels like loss. It makes you feel exposed, naked, bare. It looks different than what others are experiencing, AND it brings prolific, healthy growth.
I have included some pictures of the pruned trees and the unpruned trees. I invited you to ponder. Take a few deep breaths, settle in. Ask yourself; In what ways has 2020 pruned you? In what ways may you have resisted being cut back? What has that cost you? What do you need to grieve? What prolific growth do you see God bringing to fruition in your life?
This passage from John 15 reminds us that God tends so well to our souls and that as long as we stay connected to him, we will bear much abundant fruit.
"I am a true sprouting vine, and the farmer who tends the vine is my Father. He cares for the branches connected to me by lifting and propping up the fruitless branches and pruning every fruitful branch to yield a greater harvest. The words I have spoken over you have already cleansed you. So, you must remain in life-union with me, for I remain in life-union with you. For as a branch severed from the vine will not bear fruit so your life will be fruitless unless you live your life intimately joined to mine." John 15:1-4 TPT
