Fruitfulness immediately sounds better than patient endurance, and we each probably have an idea of what fruitfulness could look like in our lives this year. One of the things that stood out from the purpose 2025 launch at the beginning of December was this verse:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.”
– John 15:1-2
More specifically, the second part of verse 2; “…every branch that does bear fruit He [God] prunes so that it will be even more fruitful” stood out. Every season will have its challenges, and as the branches in LifeSpring start to bear fruit, God will begin to prune and cut away the things that threaten to pull us away and disconnect us from the vine.
In this season, we may be eager to get away from patient endurance, but fruitfulness still requires it. This might sound familiar (and horror filmish; be reassured that 2025 is not going to be the same as 2024), but it takes patient endurance to guard our hearts against the relentless worries of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth. It takes patient endurance to trust God when He is pruning and cutting away what prevents you from growing and being even more fruitful. It takes patient endurance to overcome the challenges that come naturally with growth and fruitfulness.
In 2025, let us not believe that fruitfulness means an untroubled, steady increase in productivity, but take to heart the lessons God has taught us in previous seasons. Let us continue into this year knowing that the God of our season of patient endurance is also the God of our season of fruitfulness, and everything God sets before us or takes away is to help us grow and be even more fruitful.