TAKE OUT THOSE PRUNING SHEARS - A TIME TO PRUNE.

 

 



 Two quotes from “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”

Sonny: Everything will be all right in the end... if it's not all right then it's not yet the end.

Evelyn: Nothing here has worked out quite as I expected.

Muriel: Most things don't. But sometimes what happens instead is the good stuff.

I think many of us love to adopt this nonchalant way of life, but I believe that nothing will change if we are not prepared to change.

Nothing grows to fruition without pruning. Plants or humans.
Gardeners prune a rose bush for three reasons:

      I.          The bush produces more buds than it can sustain and some good ones have to go so the best ones can have the resources of the bush.

Let the good blossom!

    II.          There are some branches and buds that are sick and not going to get well.

Cut these things back in your life, give them less time and effort.

  III.          There are some that are already dead and are taking up space.

Chop those off!

-        Henry Cloud

Every good gardener I’ve met has the following qualities: curiosity, tenacity, creativity and passion. God is the Great Gardener thus let Him work in your life! 

There are relationships that really just stop all growth and need attending, so take out those shears.  

Pruning is not a negative experience; it holds within its power hope, vision and care.  When we decide to make changes in our lives, we can do so with the same creativity as stated above.  Many of us have become apathetic in our relationships, leaving problems to chance, neglect and dissolution. We often feel down and ask why we continue to have the same problems with the same person? 

GOOD QUESTIONS TO ASK OURSELVES

What reason, other than the fact that I want this relationship to work, do I have for believing that tomorrow is going to be different from today? Do I want to be having these same negative interactions 6 months or a year from now?

When you see that you need to let go of something or someone, what happens inside? What fears emerge? How paralysing are they? What can you do to tackle them?

If you are holding on to hope, what is the basis for that? Is it rational and objective? Or is it just a defence against facing the issue?

Endings are a part of life, and we are essentially wired to be able to complete them. It is because of our own trauma and developmental failures as well as other reasons that we shy away from taking the steps that could open up whole new worlds of development and growth. Let God deal with you so that you can deal well with others.

Imbalance in life and relationships often comes from two sources.

1.     You have too much to do. Too many meetings, too many relationships, too many tasks pull you in too many directions.

2.     A few big problems (usually human in nature) are taking up lots of your time and energy (or at least more than their fair share) than the rest of the people and projects.

 

God believes in pruning, Jesus said,” I am the True Vine and my Father is the gardener......every branch that bears fruit He prunes.” John 15

So prune wisely and begin the New Year with a New Perspective.

"The wise person adjusts to the truth.  The foolish person adjusts the truth so that he has to do nothing different." (P133)

Blessings

Margsxx

Resources:

Cloud, H PhD: Necessary Endings, 2010.