A Tenderized Heart

One day I was writing in my prayer journal.  Well, to be honest, I was doing more crying than writing.  It had been a long, difficult season of grief, discouragement, and loss. I didn't know how much more I could endure. 

I was doing my best to express to God that I knew I was being pruned by Him, but if the pruning didn't stop soon, there would be nothing left of me. Have you been there?

As I was falling apart before the Lord, I sensed him telling me that he was tenderizing me.  Well the first thing that popped in my head was the image of a metal mallet. This tool typically consists of a heavy, blunt surface with a textured side that is used to pound and break down the fibers of tougher cuts of meat, making them more tender and easier to chew. 

Well that pretty much summed up the season of my life I was in.  It felt like my life consisted of heavy, blunt, beatings on all sides.

This led me to do some research on the process of tenderizing. I learned a lot. In short, tenderizing meat makes it softer and easier to digest.  So what does this have to do with me? 

I realized God was  pruning me and cutting off everything within me that didn't bear fruit. 

John 15 : "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 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. 

God was examining my heart and transforming my heart from being full of bitterness, unforgiveness, anger, jealousy, and self-sufficiency to a heart full of compassion, forgiveness, peace, joy, and trust.

Ezekiel 36:26-27 Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you;
and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
“I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes.

God is so good to us, even when we can't see it.  I was frustrated with the season of being tenderized and pruned, but all the while God was blessing me and making me more fruitful. He's a good, good Father and he always has your best in mind. He can be trusted in ALL things and EVERY season. Yes, even when you feel like you're being beaten from all sides.