A Time to prune

It’s that time of year again.  This year we’ve planted a larger garden (12 x 5 area, so not that big).  We have annuals coming up from seed.  I go out to prune, to thin the seedlings so that the others will grow into full plants.

My husband struggles with this process.  "Don't pull out, they will do it themselves."  I remember my first garden.  I know the package of seeds said to prune to four inches, but that was so many plants.  What if I made the wrong choice and the ones left behind died, my garden would be ruined.  And who was this name brand seed company, did they really know that I needed to prune?  So I pulled a few out, but left a lot.

And any seasoned gardener would know what happened next, my garden was a complete failure.  Nothing grew, there wasn’t room.

I think the same when God from time to time prunes something in my life.  I may miss it at first, but after a while, I realize I’m growing in other areas.  We need to be pruned.  I’m pruned and thinned to be more like Christ.  I can mature further without as much or none of what was removed.

The recent example in watching TV at night.  I had formed the habit that any night I was home after 7, I watched TV.  In itself it is ok, but we’re are home more in the summer.  We don’t need to sit for the last several hours of our day watching TV.  There’s books to read.  There’s a yard to enjoy.  There’s my girl’s imagination to see in action.  There’s general conversation to catch up when we didn’t have many evenings alone. 

So instead of reaching for the remote, I look at what is going on.  For my girl won’t always ask for TV on, but when it comes on it commands her attention.  Then I turn to what else I could do with this precious time that would honor God.  It is a change in my thoughts, my habits, but totally worth it.