There is a lot of controversy among the "experts" as to the proper method of pruning these tree's. In my experience, I could pour gasoline and light a match and they will grow back. With each passing season, with each pruning, they always seem to get bigger.
Crepe Myrtles really have me thinking about the Gospels...especially the Gospel of John 15:1-8. You hear Jesus tell His disciples that he is the "True Vine" and His Father is the "True Vine Grower". Jesus warns that "every branch that does not bear fruit will be taken away". He also says that "every branch that bears fruit will be pruned".
Either way you look at it, both are painful. Obviously, being "cut off" would be the more severe of the two. Really...who wants to be cut off? On the flip side, being pruned sounds painful, too. In fact, if you are bearing more fruit, you are more likely in need of pruning. Can't the good "fruit bearer's" be left to bear fruit in peace? What's up with all the pruning and pain? Is there no incentive for being a "fruit bearer"?
The truth of the matter is this: Jesus never promised that those who followed Him would live a "life full of perks". In fact, the Gospels teach the complete opposite. As I flip through the channels and come across the "New Evangelists" of today, their messages contrasts with Gospels so significantly that its dumbfounding. These preachers and their invocations...they would have no problem convincing the masses that green is actually purple!
Sadly, they are completely missing the point. How many times have we heard, "The more you give, the more you will receive"? While this is true, it is true in a totally different context than what many portray. I can't tell you how many 2 a.m. channel surfing testimonies I've heard: People giving their last $10 to a church -low and behold- God blessed them with better jobs, more money and a penthouse suite. Yes, the more you give the more you will receive...but "receiving" has nothing to do with the $800,000 ocean front condo you can now afford! Or how about the $80,000 Jaguar sitting in your driveway. This is NOT a result of being a "better fruit bearer". The monetary luxuries you have in your life are incongruent with Jesus and the Gospels. For over 2,000 years, those "closest" to Him were NOT walking around claiming they "got rich" because they "believed". Quite the contrary!! Let's talk about how many saints rejected their family inheritance to live a monastic life. With all due respect, I can't imagine the Joyce Meyers' or the Joel Olstein's of the world being Beatified when they die. While many find them to be entertaining, spiritual and deeply religious, my opinion is exactly an that...an opinion. They don't hold a candle to Mother Teresa or St. Francis of Assisi.
Pruning hurts. The more we grow in Christ and the more we grow in His love, the more we will feel those painful sheers. Every time we feel those sharp pangs, we must remind ourselves that the best things in life are sometimes the things that bring us the most pain (as I'm sure you mom's out there can affirm). With each pruning, God blesses us with the opportunity to grow back twice in size (just like those Crepe Myrtles). And if we are "fruit bearers", I am certain we will feel those shears more often than we might hope. While I pray God's pruning of me never involves gasoline and a match, I have to believe it's much better than the alternative.
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