“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit.” — John 15:5 (NIV)
Lent is a season of reflection, repentance, and renewal. It is a time when we remember that spiritual growth comes through pruning, pressing, and crushing.
Grapes are beautiful on the vine—round and sweet because they are deeply connected to the source. When grapes stay connected, they grow healthy and strong. However, if they detach from the vine, they wither.
In the same way, we are called to abide in Christ. In the Methodist tradition, we are reminded that God’s grace is always at work—shaping us, sanctifying us, and drawing us toward holiness. Sometimes that shaping feels like pruning.
Lent invites us to ask:
What in me needs pruning?
Where is God refining my character?
Am I willing to be transformed for the sake of bearing fruit?
Am I staying connected to the Vine through spiritual disciplines?
Grapes serve their purpose not just by hanging on the vine. To fulfill their greatest purpose, they must be harvested and pressed. Only then do they become something greater—juice, nourishment, and wine.
Through prayer, fasting, acts of mercy, and self-examination, we allow God to press out what is selfish or prideful within us, so that what remains is love. And love, when poured out, becomes nourishment for the world. As Methodists, we believe in sanctifying grace—the truth that God is not done with us yet. The crushing is not destruction; it is transformation.
This Lent, may we trust the Vine.
May we yield to the Gardener.
And may our lives become fruitful for the glory of God.
Prayer:
Gracious God,
Prune what is not of You.
Press out what keeps us from loving fully.
Help us remain in Christ, the True Vine,
So that our lives may bear fruit that lasts.
Amen.
“Pruning Audit” Exercise:
Take 10 minutes with a piece of paper. Draw a simple vine with several branches.
On each branch, write a commitment or habit you currently have.
Circle the one that feels “withered” or is sucking the life out of your relationship with God.
Pray: “Gardener, I give you permission to prune this so I can bear more fruit.”
