I had a good conversation yesterday with someone about the reality of the Easter story and yet how for many Christians it seems to have little motivating impact. Sure, they’ll get all teary eyed over what Christ did and the suffering He endured - but after the tears have stopped flowing there seems to be little action. The friend I was talking with suggested that he thinks its because we’ve lost any appreciation for what Christ’s actions rescued us from. In other words, we really don’t appreciate the depravity, the despicable dark stain, and the putrid stench of sin - and that mankind reeks of it. He went on to say that if we grasped how retched sin is in God’s eyes and the resulting wrath of God against sin then we would have a better understanding of the depth’s of God’s love and what He endured to deal with sin and make possible our cleansing.

I was thinking of that conversation as I did the devotional for Day two of the 50 Days of Prayer and Fasting. As I read through John 15, the following words stuck out at me,

He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. –John 15:2 (NIV)

I wonder how much of a difference our Christian witness in our community would be if we really grasped the pithiness of sin and the work that God has done to deal with it. Certainly, as I examine my own life this morning I am gripped with the realization that there are things I yet do that are an offense to God. Today, let’s willingly surrender to the pruning that God would do in our lives so that we are fruitful for His kingdom!