Pruning for the Future

Pruning is that process whereby a plant is brought under the careful discipline of a watchful gardener, in order that it might be as useful and productive as possible. This process necessarily involves the removal of what to the eye of a novice may appear to be promising new growth, but which the master gardener knows runs counter to his purposes. The gardener does this in order to focus the plant's energies on what is most necessary or desired by the gardener. And so it is with us in our Christian lives in the hands of our heavenly father.

Over ten years ago we set out to provide a resource website that would point believers to the best available resources concerning knowing God and personal godliness. Our intention was to provide a limited and curated list of the best Christian material on as many subjects as would be helpful, and then to offer recommendations for each work, explaining why we recommend it, and for whom we recommend it.

That is a massive project! As incremental progress was made, we were thankful for all that God was allowing us to do—as a small group of believers, we were genuinely helping thousands of Christians every year. Mainly, we were seeking to help others in ways we had been helped, and to save them the time, energy, and error of sifting through what is less than best.

As time marched on, our own lives filled up more and more with the busyness of families and the needs around us. Faithfulness in our immediate sphere meant that our work at Granted Ministries was pushed to second or third place because of other, more immediate and constant demands which God had placed upon us. That is HIS right, and we don't begrudge Him for it!

But for Granted Ministries, this meant that our previous efforts ground to a halt. What remained was an ongoing publishing ministry with an aging website that no longer matched what we were actually doing. We were able to keep up with fulfilling orders, and the routine reprinting of books. But new books worthy of publishing were rare and hard to bring to the finish line. Honestly, we weren't looking for more work! Added to that difficulty, we were continually feeling pulled back to our original intention of being the sort of resource website we had intended. But we now realize that such a project is not something we will reach to in the foreseeable future. We are still convinced that such a website would be immensely profitable for God's people. But it is not for us to do, at least not at this time.

That brings us to our present change in direction and the pruning at hand. We will, for the foreseeable future, be limiting ourselves to the reprinting of proven works (whether books or tracts), and the new publication of a few long-planned titles. We will not do away entirely with our previous work, however. You may still listen to and order CDs if you like, articles are available, and we have a list of recommended books. We aren't trying to undo the work we did, but rather to stop seeking the wider ministry we had previously begun. This limited direction will continue indefinitely. 

Thank you for reading, and for your prayers, support, and patronage over the years. We look forward to the days ahead!