5th Sunday of Easter – Pruning for New Growth

“Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing’” (John 15:1-5).

Lent is about “pruning” bad habits and eliminating things that get in the way of our relationship with God, our selves, and others. Easter, on the other hand, is about the resurrection, new beginnings, and joy. It is the result of this pruning – a strengthened and invigorated relationship with God or a renewed outlook on life and faith. New life begins from where we have changed or withdrawn from old, unhealthy behaviors.

Think about it this way: When we are consumed by anger, we don’t have as much energy going toward love. We take that energy away from love to feed our anger. If we prune away that anger, we have that much more energy to give to something more constructive.

Now that Lent is over and the “pruning” is complete, we can see how we are connected to Christ and we can choose where to grow by redirecting our energy. Easter is a time to begin anew and become who we now can become only because those old encumbrances are gone.

Only branches that are connected to the vine produce grapes. So, too, will we be fruitful as long as we maintain our connection to Jesus. The Gospel tells us that as long as we live in Christ, even if we occasionally need a little pruning to make us stronger or better, we will always be fruitful.

How have you strengthened your relationship with God this Easter season?

Adapted from Word on the Go, a downloadable resource from RENEW International