The Branch

Promise:
And every branch that beareth fruit he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
(John 15:2)

Prayer:
Lord, about the branch, I have read that if left alone, the branch will grow downward to the ground and then along in the dirt and dust. The master gardner comes along, carefully picks up the branch, cleans it off, snips and prunes, and ties it up close to the vine. You are that Master-gardner, I am that wayward branch. Thank you for not cutting me completely off, but You have carefully been cutting away the dryness and dirt, and tieing me up close to You. Part of a poem by Annie Johnson Flint reads:
Rejoice, tho' each desire, each dream,
Each hope of thine
Shall fall and fade; it is the hand
of Love Divine
That holds the knife, that cuts and breaks
With tenderest touch,
That thou, whose life has borne some fruit
May'st now bear much.
May Your life flow through me, and may I bud and bear yet more fruit in Your name. Thank You my beloved Gardener. Amen