"I am the true vine, and my Father is the Vinedresser. Every branch of Mine that bears no fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bare fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit...abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself." (John 15:2-4)

The True Vine

True Spiritual growth comes when we are grafted, like a young shoot, into the True Vine, Jesus Christ, our Saviour. There, we can nourish our souls and grow in beauty, providing much fruit for our brothers and sisters. There, we can feed on the life-force of the Author of Life.

If we are grafted well, we shall remain healthy and grow in strength and grace; we shall become the perfect image of our master, and no one will know that we were grafted-in, but they will see only the beauty of the Vine, the Body of Christ, the church. If we do not graft well into the vine, we shall lack sustenance and wither, falling to the ground. Once we except the need, and have the desire to be grafted, then Our Lord binds us to Himself with strong ties that we may never be separated - even amidst the fiercest storms! As long as our desire remains we shall stay grafted to the vine and live as one.

We shall be pruned by the Vinedresser to ensure that we provide a good harvest - for ourselves and for the whole world. Whilst pruning is painful, it is an absolute necessity if we are to remain strong and healthy. We must also avoid branching-out too far on our own away from the Vine, if we do this, we may suffer an infestation from the world, one which will stunt our growth. Eventually, when we are laden with the ripened fruits of repentance, obedience and charity, our fruit will be picked, taken to the wine press and there it will become a fine wine, poured out at the heavenly banquet.