Jesus, the True Vine – May we be his branches that bear
fruit
We thank you, gracious God, for Jesus Christ the true vine,
with his roots eternally grounded in you. We rejoice that by grace we have been
grafted into him, to be branches on a vine which bears the loveliest of all the
fruits of earth. Yet we confess that all is not well with the way we live.
Please forgive us for the occasions when we have been the
ones to introduce disease into the vine, preferring its contamination to the
vigour of health. Forgive us for neglecting to draw deeply on the sap of Life, for our tendency to wander instead of growing
on the framework your provide, for being
content, and sometimes even proud of, a few sparse or undersized fruits, for the apathy which lets us to go through
some seasons without bearing any fruit.
Have mercy on us. Please do not lose patience or sever us
completely from the true vine. Rather heal our diseases, discipline and train
our wandering tendrils, prune our unfruitful branches and cut away our diseased
ones. May we remain in Christ and he in us, through all the changing seasons of
life. Let us delight in bearing the fruits of love which are our true purpose
and joy. In Jesus’ name. Amen
