Abide | Midyear Prayer and Fasting (Family Devotional)Sample

The Word of God Prunes

CONNECT

Prepare:

• 7 toothpicks, pens, or pencils
• 1 marble, small ball, or coin

To start:

Arrange the toothpicks into a puzzle like this:

Puzzle instructions:

Remove one stick from the pile so the marble can roll from the top to the bottom. If you don’t have a marble or small ball, you can demonstrate the activity using a coin and guide it through the spaces between the sticks until it reaches the end of the puzzle.

(See the end of this day’s devotional for the answer to the puzzle.)

Was it fun figuring out the puzzle? You know what? Sometimes, we can be in situations like that puzzle, where we have to figure out how to get to our goal.

The good news is the Bible tells us how we can do that.

READ THE WORD

Let’s read John 15:1–4 from the Bible:

“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. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.” John 15:1–4

A vinedresser’s job is to oversee, cultivate, and ensure the grapes in a vineyard are growing well and plenty. The vinedresser strategically removes branches from a grape vine so that new shoots can grow. And because the vinedresser studies and watches over the vineyard daily, he or she knows each branch and how much fruit is expected to be harvested in the next season.

This process of removing branches to grow new shoots is called pruning, and this term is often used in the Bible to describe how God removes some of our bad attitudes, bad habits, and all kinds of sinful thoughts and behaviors. This is so we can become more and more like Jesus in the way we think, speak, and behave. As our vinedresser, He takes care of us, lovingly pruning away the things in our lives that drag us down or hinder us from becoming more like Jesus. This is not always an easy experience; sometimes, it hurts. This is why it is important to remember that God does this because He wants the best for us.

God nourishes and prunes us as we continually abide in Him. We do this by continuing to trust in Jesus and by praying and studying His word.

HUDDLE

Parents to Kids

4–6 years old

• Have you prayed to God today? What did you tell Him?
• What story from the Bible do you like the best? Why?

7–12 years old

• Have you read the Bible and prayed to God today?
• Is there something that bothers you today? Do you want to talk about it now so we could pray to God and ask Him to give us a verse from the Bible to guide you?

Kids to Parents

• Can you share to me an instance when God was removing a bad habit in your life, and it was very hard for you. How did you handle it?

No matter how young or old we are, we need to make it a habit to read the Bible and pray to God every day. As the vinedresser diligently takes care of the vines every day, God will be with us all day, every day. We can trust Him as He works in our lives.

PRAY

Dear God, we thank You for watching over us daily. We want to abide in You and trust You every day. Please help us obey You even when it hurts sometimes. We know You love us and we love You, God. We surrender to You our plans. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

DISCOVER

Gardening is a wonderful hobby.

Did you know that pruning determines how many shoots will grow the next year and where they will be located? This process involves a lot of knowledge and skills so a vinedresser usually has to have a college degree in cultivating grapes which may require courses in different sciences and wine-making.

Also, apart from knowing exactly which branch to cut, a vinedresser also has to be familiar with the different types of grapes. There are more than 10,000 varieties worldwide and each of them would need unique care.

Such an amazing job and it’s not as easy as you thought, right? Even experienced vinedressers still make many mistakes! But our Vinedresser, God, never makes mistakes. He is the perfect vinedresser, and that’s why we can trust Him all the time.

Answer to the puzzle: Remove the topmost horizontal stick.

Sources:

1. GuildSomm. “Vine Pruning.” Youtube, September 7, 2019. Video, 5:16. Accessed March 28, 2022.
2. Dowd, Mary. “Job Description of a Vinedresser.” Chron. Updated December 21, 2021. Accessed March 28, 2022.