More From Paul Kurpengmund Anda

John 15:2 tells us that God is the gardener and prunes branches that bear fruit so that they may bear more fruit. In pruning, people use tools for cutting out parts of plants that are old and dry. Pruning is done with the intention of making the plant bear more fruit and improve yield. God uses pruning for the same purpose to improve yield in us.

In pruning the lives of people, God uses a spiritual tool. The tool God uses is the word, which corrects, rebukes, and nourishes people. Pruning often means coming out of our comfort zones and enduring pain or discomfort. In this process, our minds become renewed and transformed.

Those who bear fruit listen attentively to God’s word. Moreover, God’s children eagerly submit and obey God’s commands. Living according to instruction of God through scripture helps us bear fruit more abundantly.

The fruit we bear is the fruit of the spirit described in Galatians 5:22-23. The are spiritual fruit manifests physically in the lives of people who listen to and obey God’s word. Without God we cannot bear this fruit. God is God of abundance; and God prunes the branches that bear fruit so that we may bear even more. Spending time reading scripture, meditating on God’s word, and going to church are ways we can hear God.