Faithfull Utterances: Pruning 101

By Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew
Columnist

I go through a pruning process ever so often. I think many of us find ourselves feeling as if God is taking things away from us. I have felt like that about people. There have been individuals in my life that at the time, seemed as if we would be together as friends forever. I would have never thought that our relationship would have changed or even ended. Just as flowers go through pruning, we, too, have moments in our lives when God is changing our landscape. It isn’t always that people are even bad for you. It’s just that they can’t go where you are going. Just as this removal can be painful, it is necessary for growth. Pruning involves “the selective removal of certain parts of a plant, such as branches, buds, or roots. The practice entails targeted removal of diseased, damaged, dead, nonproductive, structurally unsound, or otherwise unwanted tissue from crop and landscape plants.” (Wikipedia)

People are in your life for a reason or a season is a catchphrase that most of us have heard at some point in our lives. There is validity to this. There are some things in our lives that no longer serve the purpose that it initially did. For many of us, we see when God removes people or situations away from our lives as a punishment. I know I did. It was not until later that I fully understood this concept of gardening was relevant in my life. “Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit” (John 15:2)

As you move into 2021, do not be surprised that as you are growing, God is moving you away from those things that may have mattered a lot to you. It served a purpose at the time, but it no longer does and if you keep it, it will impede your growth or even destroy you. My daughter is home from college, and I asked her to repot some of my plants. My Ivy plant was growing into a vine with beautiful leaves. Little did we know that the roots had wrapped around themselves because there was no more space to expand. They were limited because of their situation. In removing the plant to a new environment, I am sure there was initial shock from the familiar. Yet, I know that any more time that my plant spent in that pot, it would have stopped growing and possibly died.

There are many tools used for pruning. Pruning shears are handheld to cut branches and twigs. As we go through pruning, we are held in God’s hands closely. He is so close, like a gardener, paying attention to every detail to make sure that the task is being done with care and intention. The gardener knows what must go and so does God. Pruning is not fun and it is shocking to our systems when we are moved or something important to us is removed from our lives. Yet, it is in these moments that we must trust God to know that we are being prepared for something greater. You cannot allow yourself to get crammed into a space because it is familiar and comfortable.

Allow the Master to work within you to take off those things that may serve as stumbling blocks to your destiny. Do not lose your focus in this moment because it is so easy to grow disillusioned, fearful, and even angry because it doesn’t make sense. Just rest in knowing that God has something greater for you even when it is not clear and doesn’t feel good. You are preparing to blossom into something magnificent and beautiful. Trust the process!

Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew is the Founder and CEO of Soulstice Consultancy, Specializing as a Partnership Broker and Leadership Expert for companies and organizations to thrive with measurable and meaningful impact. She also is the VP of Community Affairs and Strategic Alliances for the State Fair of Texas. Visit https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-tapestry_1 to listen. Learn more about Dr. Froswa’ at https://drfroswa.com/.