By Sandra Bost
I pruned my begonia this week.
It’s a bronze leaf white begonia that our daughter gave me for Mother’s Day four and a half years ago. She planted a tiny little plant in a terracotta pot on which she had painted a butterfly — one wing blue, the other purple — made from one of each of her babies’ feet. She embellished the painting with tiny antennae and little initials for each of the girls’ first names. My favorite tiny creature — created by three of my favorite girls. Needless to say, it is a treasure.
Though I have never had much of a green thumb, both of my grandmothers and my momma were master gardeners. I cannot tell you how many plants they rooted for me that became compost in my care.
I’ve rendered so many rosemary plantlets lifeless. And I don’t even want to talk about the number of African violets I have annihilated. But this little begonia continues to blossom. She loves me. She has found a way to thrive in my (capricious) care.
Not only has she flourished — she has reproduced! Momma taught me how to propagate stem cuttings by clipping them just below the node and placing them in a glass jar on my windowsill until a system of roots appears. I have lost count of how many offspring she has produced, but I am really proud of myself for being someone who can finally keep a green thing thriving.
Whenever it’s time to prune my little survivor, I always have mixed feelings. She works so hard to stretch out her stems before producing her delicately beautiful white blooms. But they misshape the symmetry of her modest mound, so I have to prune them. I feel guilty for discarding her flowers and wasting the supple bronze leaves she has made. I am comforted, though, to know that some of her stems will sprout roots and keep bringing beauty into the world.
Tuesday, right after I put my fresh cuttings in my favorite tiny jam jar, and placed them on the windowsill, I sat down with my morning coffee to sing my devotion. A friend shared The Worship Initiative’s daily devotion called “Sing” about two months ago. It is a free subscription that texts a link to a daily devotion right to my phone every weekday morning at 7. Shane & Shane, a Texas-based contemporary worship music band, and various friends — from the music industry, pastors, speakers, influencers — join them around a table to pray, sing and share God’s word. It has become one of my favorite devotions.
Joni Eareckson Tada, a Christian speaker and author who became a quadriplegic due to a diving accident at age 17 almost 60 years ago, led an impassioned devotion from John 15:1-2. She spoke about the importance of abiding in Christ, especially during difficult times — which she equated to the painful pruning that must take place in our lives in order for us to bear fruit.
I found it so ironic — but just like Jesus — to be contemplating the loss of my begonia’s delicate blooms right as Joni brought us to this passage in John 15:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit (ESV).”
I had hesitated before making those cuts, feeling guilty for discarding what was soft and beautiful. Yet, Joni’s message was a quiet reminder that the master gardener never prunes out of carelessness. The trimming that feels like waste to us is often the precise work required to keep the plant vibrant, healthy and capable of bringing forth an abundance of new growth.
Joni shared candidly about the pain and difficulty of living with paralysis for nearly six decades. But through those deep cuts, she learned how to abide in Christ Jesus and rest in the process of being pruned by His Hand. As a result, He has multiplied her effectiveness for The Kingdom and given her a platform for global impact.
Our Father doesn’t snip away at our lives to diminish us, but to cultivate a yield far greater than we could produce on our own. When life calls for a sharp cut — when plans shift, comforts are stripped away or seasons change — may we choose to trust His skillful Hands.
This week, see if there is an area in your life that you sense God pruning. Stop viewing the process as punishment or waste. Ask Him to help you surrender to the tender work of His shears, knowing that what is painful or feels like a loss today may simply be a new start. Your Master Gardener is giving you the opportunity to abide in Him, so that you can become a living sanctuary of His beauty and grace. One rooted branch at a time.
Thanks for my green thumb, Momma.
