Much
“he who abide in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit” John 15:5
Much – Last year I severely pruned the grapefruit tree behind my house. I cut and chopped and whacked the useless branches. This year I picked so many grapefruit that I had to use wheelbarrows to haul the fruit away. Without supporting all the useless attachments, the tree put all of its energy into what it was designed to do – make lots of grapefruits.
Last year God began severely pruning my life. He started cutting and chopping away all sorts of useless attachments. Of course, over many years I grafted all of those attachments to His tree. But the result was a tree full of suckers, producing little fruit. God cut everything way back. He is still cutting. But I know now that His purpose is to produce much fruit. More than a big wheelbarrow full.
“Much” is the word of a fulfilling life. It’s what we all want. What good is it to spend all these years here and end up with “meager” or “little” or “modest”? If life is going to be what it should be, it should end up with “much”. But for most of us, “much” is only a dream. It will never be a reality. Why? Because we forget the first part of this verse. If you want “much”, you have to be continuously connected (abide). The Greek word polus (much) leaves no doubt that abiding means big production. If you want a life that is more than a wheelbarrow full, let God prune you like crazy. Then abide.
And now the most marvelous part – much fruit is guaranteed. It’s not up to you. It’s not about how hard you work, how smart you are, how carefully you invest, how well you’re networked. You have only one task. Abide. God will do the rest and you will be very fruitful. Oh, all those attachments you added along the way may be pruned, but “much” fruit (God’s kind) is certain to grow. The truth is that you didn’t really need all the suckers anyway.
Today: “Father, I want life’s guaranteed “much”. Help me stay completed connected to you and not worry about the pruning. Fill up my wheelbarrow.”
