This morning, I was reading Mike’s post titled Bearing Good Fruit on his wonderfully written and inspiring blog, Seeking to Reflect Jesus. I read how easy it is to “gloss over” scriptural references we have heard over and over such as “God is the vine grower, Jesus is the vine,” but for some reason, Mike’s words hit me between the eyes (you know, that place where my brain is supposed to be.).
I even exclaimed out loud: So, that’s what is was…last year when I lost my job, my house, my savings, my credit, my credibility, my friends, and nearly my life…I was being pruned… topped out, and cut back.
Well, I must say, a whole lot more fresh air and sunshine is being let in. The new growth seems to be good and strong.
I’ll let God and others evaluate the quality of my fruit (my writing, my taking care of my next door neighbors, etc.).
If I focus on my own wake (to mix a few metaphors), to evaluate how well I’m doing, then I’m not watching where I’m going and could hit a stump or run aground.
In the past, I have become addicted to the validation (praise, thanks, compliments, etc.) So now I just keep my eyes to the next task and my feet and hands moving without regard to ‘stats’ or pings or whatever.
To throw in another metaphor (from cooking; specifically, to smoking meat) “If I’m lookin’, it ain’t cookin.”
Thanks be to God, and to God be the Glory.
The View from 5022 
I’m guessing I’m younger than you, so that’s probably part of it. I don’t know yet how to let go of the need for validation and obsessing over if I’m on the right track. It almost comes from the right place, but it quickly can be come self absorbed. Anyway I appreciate your post and what I do know of you, you seem like a person who loves like Jesus.
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Bless your heart. That’s the nicest thing anyone could say to me.
A young friend asked me recently how I had so much faith. I told her that I’m old and I’ve been through a lot of shit…pardon my French. So, you’re right, age has something to do with it but I was still looking for validation 6 months ago. And I’m still fallible. I have to keep reminding myself to give it all to Jesus: both the issues and the credit. So far, so good.
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Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this subject, I am blessed and had learned new light in the aspect of “pruning.”
Sometimes God will allow us to lose every thing for us to see that He is more than enough and that He alone is the source of all good things.
Being stripped off of “who” we are and what we have reminds us that we are nothing without Him.
Thank you and you will be in my prayers.
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Thank you and that is so kind of you to remember me in your prayers. May I ask a favor? My next door neighbor had surgery yesterday to remove an aneurism in his stomach. He is older and in poor health. Apparently, he has suffered a stroke since last night. No one in the family has been able to talk with the doctor. His daughter is here from two states away and will be here until Tuesday. His wife is in worse shape than he was (COPD, etc.). When the daughter leaves, I am pretty much all they will have to depend on. Please pray for all of us.
I though when I moved, I would finally just have to take care of myself and my two animals. I guess God had other ideas.
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