I was pruning my succulents this afternoon. This pretty photo represents one of my potted succulents on my back porch with like a year or more of growth (since the Feb 2021 freeze in Texas). As I started looking closely I saw dead roots. 😔 I knew this was gonna take more than a minute. I got a trash bag and broom because as I’m moving around the plant stands, succulent leaves are just dropping to the ground. Just the shaking of the stand is making the dead leaves fall off.
Yep at first, I was just looking up top and the buds all had pretty sprouts 🌱 but I went down to the soil and roots, it was dead…look at that rotted root – it’s gross- dead dead dead. So eventually that whole vine of sprouts and buds will die. But those sprouts are so pretty! That’s what I saw first to my eye just glancing at them everyday.
But as I spent time looking at it, with intention of cleaning up the plant- looking for dead things I saw more down in the soil at the roots. So my dilemma, cut it off now and allow new life to grow? Or do I like it enough to keep it alive until it literally falls off the vine/root and to the ground, making a mess (and attracting the tiniest annoying ants that exist).
When I apply this spiritually and from experience in my faith journey this is an important part of growth. There’s so many references in the Bible speaking about pruning vines. John 15, Jesus says, I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. The whole passage speaks about staying connected to the vine to produce fruit but I want to focus on the pruning part.
So we go to several scriptures that might visualize in the spiritual what this is. Hebrews 12:10 starts a great segment that talks about the Fathers discipline is always right and good for us because it means we will share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening (in fact painful at times), but after! There will be a quiet harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. Key words: “quiet harvest” and “trained” speak to me.
Quiet/peaceful harvest – in the moments w Jesus in your time with him, in the worship moments when he speaks, in the deep yearning prayers for something or long prayers on your knees, when chains break/fall, when seeking wisdom and clarity. A quiet/peaceful harvest comes through with your spiritual fruit or a harvest of spiritual gifts, answers from above, breakthroughs, addictions broken, forgiveness happens, peace replaces chaos, relationships mended, release of things, miracles happen. The quiet/peaceful harvest happens after pruning. Pruning yields room for new harvest.
Trained in this way: right living requires training- training is practice and repetition of something to achieve or excel at a skill. I’m not a theologian or philosopher but what the Lord speaks to me about in this verse is the lack of training. And lack of the self discipline to practice. How do we/I/you train, spiritually? Time with Him: reading the Word, praying and communicating with Him, asking him to prune things out of your life, worshiping Him in your specific way you convene with Him best. Repetition: daily, multiple times a day. End goal: share in his holiness, be holy, love people, produce spiritual fruit & achieve a quiet harvest.
“No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.”
Hebrews 12:11 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/heb.12.11.NLT
“I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you.”
John 15:1-3 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/jhn.15.1-3.NLT
You may be coming out of a pruning season and looking like this bare succulent- but with pruning gives room for new fruit/new things to grow, and remember from the pruning there’s a requirement of training, to produce a quiet peaceful harvest. Sharing in his holiness (read 1 Peter 1:15-16), with our end goals to be like Jesus, and live out his greatest command to love God and love people. Lord knows we need more fruit to love some of these people in our lives.
Hope this visual helps you as the Lord used my succulents to speak to me today.
jennifer cofer 