“God doesn’t prune dead branches; he prunes live branches that can generate more fruit.”- Os Hillman
In Chapter 7 of The Joseph Calling, Os Hillman notes that every person God uses must go deeper with God. Through this process, you see God’s calling manifested in your life. During your desert season, God teaches you trust and discernment. Therefore, your job is to wait for His deliverance.
Next, Mr. Hillman makes three observations about why many of us go through adversity:
1. We reap what we sow. That happens, Os observes, when we live a life with the values of Egypt. In other words, we sweat, toil, manipulate, and strive. Sooner or later, we reap the consequences.
2. We experience warfare over our destinies. As Jesus said, Satan seeks to steal, kill, and destroy our lives (John 10:10).
3. To experience the reproof of God as sons and daughters. As Mr. Hillman explains, “this type of reproof is more of a process by which God deposits something into us that may involve adversity for our benefit.”
In conclusion, Os states that God will do two things when He takes us through the land of affliction:
- He brings such healing that we’ll be able to forget the pain
- He makes us fruitful from our painful experiences
So that God can bring us into the place of fruitfulness, He desires to create virtue that endures times of testing. As Os encourages, although God’s never promised to keep us from entering valleys of testing, He promises to make us fruitful in them. Press into Him.
Today’s question: Os asserts that God “prunes live branches that can generate more fruit.” How has this unfolded in your life? Please share.
Coming Monday: the new Short Meditation, “The silence of contemplation”
Tomorrow’s blog: “When we understand crises”
