How many times have you set a New Year’s resolution to get healthy?  Or maybe you already work out, but you decide to take it to the next level.  So you set that goal.  “I want to run two miles in under 20 minutes.”  Or, “I want to increase my max lift by twenty-five pounds in six months.”  But now you are faced with another question— do you want to put in the work?  The setting of the goal can be exciting.  But eventually the work must start and the excitement ebbs.

Most of us aspire to walk closer with the Lord.  We want to be more faithful and more spiritual.  But then comes the work.  The work of growing in Christ is pruning.  Jesus was clear— good healthy branches will undergo pruning.  Picture what pruning is.  Pruning takes a sharp knife and cuts away living parts of the vine.  At the moment, it hurts, but it is necessary for the overall health and growth of the vine.  Pruning in your life hurts, but it always yields greater overall health and is always worth it.