John 15:1-2 "I am the real vine, and my Father is the gardener. He breaks off every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and he prunes every branch that does bear fruit, so that it will be clean and bear more fruit."

John 15:4-5 "Remain united to me, and I will remain united to you. A branch cannot bear fruit by itself; it can do so only if it remains in the vine. In the same way you cannot bear fruit unless you remain in me. "I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me." (GNB)

I've had the pleasure of documenting, by camera, the different stages a grapevine goes through. I was surprised at what I saw. I learned there is a whole lot more going on in those vines than what I had thought. I also learned how important it was to be careful with the branches. The slightest break could kill a branch and make it worthless.

In the spring all the dead branches are removed and the live branches are pruned so they will be able to produce more fruit. For a while, after the pruning, it seems like nothing is happening. The vines and branches are bare. Then suddenly one day little buds start to show. Soon those buds become larger, fuzzy pink buds. In a few weeks the buds burst open and become fuzzy, shiny, bright pink leaves. They are a very beautiful color.

The leaves continue to get larger and remain slightly fuzzy and pink. Eventually the pink color and the fuzziness disappears, leaving bright shiny green leaves. Soon the branches develop small flowers. The flowers only last for a very short time. By the time the flowers are gone the leaves are much larger and instead of being bright and shiny, they are a plain, green leaf, which eventually grows quite large. To look down a row of vines, at this stage, a person is faced with a calm peaceful view. The large leaves are gently fluttering in the wind. The bright bold colors they had at the beginning have been replaced with a soothing, calm green color.

The next thing to happen is little tiny green grapes appear. They grow slowly and are a bright lime green color. Then they become a more dull green. They stay that way for a while until one day they start to change again. This time there are orange, yellow, red, purple, and green grapes all on the same cluster. Soon a white powdery substance develops on the grapes and dulls the color. The powdery substance is a natural yeast formed on the grapes. Within a couple of weeks, they all turn purple. They are no longer bright and shiny. Some grapes have to go through a frost to become sweet.

If one of those branches had gotten slightly disconnected from the vine, it would have died and no grapes would appear on the branch. The leaves on the vines grow upward toward the sun. By absorbing the sunlight they are able to send nourishment down so the grapes can grow.

This whole process is so similar to the Christian life. When a person first becomes a Christian things may seem rosy, shiny, flowery, a bit fuzzy and new. As they mature the difficulties of every day life can make the Christian life appear dull. The shine seems to have disappeared. Some people may get discouraged at this point and give up. Maybe when a storm develops in their lives, instead of holding tightly onto Jesus, they let go and their spiritual life shrivels up and dies. But those who hang on, look towards the Son of God, spends time with Jesus, absorbing all they can from him, are able to grow into a calm, peaceful person. Each Christian will go through a few bright colorful times in their lives and some dull times. When the person hangs on to Jesus during the trials those cold, dark, days they become a person who brings a refreshing sweetness to the lives of those around them.

"If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My commandment is this: love one another, just as I love you. John 15:10-12 (GNB)