Plugging in to God or to Games... and an Insignia of Love!

Holy freholes man! Look at what my girl got a friend to make us for valentines day!!! Yeah, she's a babe. Shwing! (Sorry.) Thank you anonymous friend! Great job! I've got to put this on a T-shirt!!! I'll see if I can track down a decent picture of us together later. @;D Ok, on to God stuff (not that a healthy relationship isn't God stuff...) John 15... heavy man, heavy I hope you don't mind being challenged, because this one does it. "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He CUTS off every branch that doesn't produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more." Hey what? CUT? He's gonna give an unproductive Christian the boot? I'm going to take a stab at saying that this is not necessarily a loss of salvation. Salvation is not contingent on works, "lest any man boast." Salvation is found only in belief in Jesus as savior. Rather, I think this cutting off stuff is in some ways even more fearful. It is being cut off from our source, from love, from the Holy Spirit. Christ is the source of healing, power, resourcefulness... EVERYTHING to the believer. If a believer is plugged into this but is NOT producing, God comes along and unplugs them. This can, also, be a good thing for the believer though, because if you start going "hey, stuff is missing from my life!" ya might just turn back to God and start producing. I think the key is that you must give yourself completely to this loving God, and allow Him to do His will through you. Are you focused on the big I, or the big I AM? Example: I like video games. I'm a recovering addict of zelda classic. Not to long ago I started playing it more and more. My beautiful, wondermous girlfriend girl noticed the difference in me. I was distracted and unconnected to my Higher Power, to God. I came home and, rather than running joyously to my God, I ran "joyously" to my Game. But I was loosing both joy and sanity because I was not in contact to that vine, that source, that POWER! I've come to see that I need my God in every way on a daily bases. Otherwise, my problems become overwhelming and my life unmanageable. So stay plugged in so you can produce "much fruit!" God will then come by and remove some of those weights from your branches so your not overwhelmed and can do more. That may mean that a ministry you started and has become overwhelming splits in to, or is taken over my others. It may mean he wants to prune your life of activities that were beneficial at one time in your growth, but are now superfluous. It MIGHT mean he wants to prune you of needless distractions (like those video games, ahem... ahem...) but I do not think he is a kill joy. If I can't find God in it, I don't want it, yet to my amazement I can sometimes find God in something as earthbound as a video game! He does want us to relax and kick back, but he DOES NOT want us to make our relaxation king. And do you know why he wants you to remain in Him, in His love and to do so by obeying Him... His Holy Spirit? Because it will FILL US WITH JOY! yEAH bABY! There is no greater joy that we can experience than living constantly in Him. Gee... might be how those pesky video games become dull and pruned eh? Love ya all!