You're In Good Hands With Allstate...

As I have mentioned before, I have a part-time lawn and garden business.  This winter I spend many hours pruning trees and shrubs.  I think that this is my favorite part of the job. To me it is like an artist creating a magnificent work of art.  Every clip of the shears is a preplanned act with the vision of the finished work continually guiding your progress.  One needs to have a particular knowledge and experience of the pruning process along with a familiarity of the growing tendencies of the particular tree or shrub that you are trimming in order to correctly accomplish this task.  For instance, when pruning a fruit tree, the gardener needs to know about fruit bearing branches in order not to rob the tree of it’s fruit production the following summer.

I have been closely observing three fruit trees at my folks house as they leafed out this spring.  I had trimmed these with specific goals in mind, in the early part of this year.  My parents have a fairly narrow side patio that you exit into from their kitchen when going into their backyard.  Over the years they have painstakingly planted and decorated this area with many lovely green flowering plants, beautiful white lilies, and a number of trees.  Close to the kitchen door resides an older fig tree and a nearby pear tree.  Since it is getting difficult for them to reach all the fruit, they requested that I prune down the trees and shape them in such a way as they could reach the fruit with relative ease.

As I sculptured these trees I was focused more on size and shape than on fruit production.  Now, that they are growing out for the season, they each have a good shape with branches well within reach for my folks.  Being as they both required an arduous amount of pruning, they did not present a large display of buds and therefore will be limited in their fruit production.

In their front yard, my folks also have a very large, old persimmon tree.  Over the years they have maintained a low profile for this tree.  Therefore, I did not have to prune specifically for shape, but mainly for production.  A persimmon tree will produce fruit on its one year branches as well as on its new growth, and I pruned with this in mind.  Yesterday when I was at my folks, I happily noticed that this tree is literally overflowing with lovely cream colored blossoms.  Not only did I feel good that my pruning plans had succeeded, but also because I love fresh persimmons, persimmon pudding cake, persimmon cookies, and last year I made a fabulous persimmon based fruit cake!

All these thoughts of pruning came zinging into to my thoughts yesterday as I read in the book of John were Jesus talked about the vine and it’s branches.  He said that “I am the vine.  You are the branches.  Those who live in me while I live in them will produce a lot of fruit.  But you can’t produce anything without me.”  (John 15:5 Gods Word ©)  Previous to this statement He explained that “My father takes care of the vineyard.  He removes everyone of my branches that doesn’t produce fruit.  He also prunes every branch that does produce fruit to make it produce more fruit.”  (John 15:1-2 Gods Word ©)

Just think about that.  Jesus is the vine, we are the fruit bearing branches and our Father God is the Master Gardener who cares for His garden.  As a Master Gardener, our Heavenly Father knows just what trimming we, the branches, need in order to develop and mature as individuals and in order for us to produce the maximum quantity of fruit.

He is daily creating a magnificent work of art in each of us.  I can just see Him pausing in His labor of love, to step back and take a satisfied overall look at the progress He is making in us, His children.  I can also see the smile on His face as He foresees the finished product, coming out of dormancy later in the season, as we blossom and produce lavish amount of fruit for His Kingdom purposes.

What was that old Allstate saying about “being in good hands with Allstate?”  Well, you can rest in peace in your daily walk in knowing that you are in the best position available to mankind, soundly placed in the Good Hands of God!  Stay tuned and keep asking yourself… “What (good things) am I expecting today?”