“Lord, I praise You for being a good and faithful Father. Please remove any branches from me that aren’t producing fruit and prune those that are fruitful so that they might bear even more fruit. Remove any dead weight in me and remove anything in my life that isn’t pleasing to You. Make me more like You today and help me to bear much fruit today for Your glory. Amen.”

The Bible app has a guided prayer feature that I use every day. It’s a good way to center my thoughts and feelings on God. Often, it will voice my prayers to God better than I could. I’m all for coming to God with my own words, but sometimes it’s helpful to pray the words of saints who have walked the same paths as I have and have a lifetime of wisdom to share with me.

Anyone who knows anything about gardening (which I don’t) will tell you that pruning is essential to growth. If you don’t cut back dead weight, you hinder future growth in any plant. It seems counter intuitive to cut something to make it grow, but that’s how it is for those with green thumbs.

I don’t want anything in my life that doesn’t please the Almighty. I don’t want anything that keeps me from being all that God created me to be. The goal is not to be the best looking plant in the garden but to be one that bears fruit.

Ultimately, it’s about staying connected to the vine. When I’m disconnected, I’m as good as dead. I have no life apart from the Vine. Apart from Jesus, I can do nothing. Lord, whatever it takes, make me more like You. Amen.