“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. 5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.
John 15:1-6
For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.” 7 If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? 8 But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. 11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Hebrews 12:6-11
God’s ongoing, deeper, liberating work in our lives…At times, it can hurt and discourage us. But, it is necessary for the work He knows needs to be done to produce His character in us – at all costs.
One of the best times to praise God is when your life’s just been rocked – like mine was this morning – and you feel like giving up. You feel like you had nothing left to begin with, and even that is being taken from you.
Praise God.
He really does work through the praises of His people. Even when praising Him is super hard. The sacrifice of praise is a sweet aroma to Him. He’ll be faithful to help you. So praise Him. In the end, you’ll be glad you did.
It’s not about me and what He’s asking me to part with. It’s about Him, and His faithfulness to give you more and more of Himself. That’s Who He is – The Faithful One. Hallelujah!
God bless,
Mark