About five years ago my wife planted a grape vine.  A couple of years later she planted two more.  We knew nothing about grapes.  But we sure are learning and it is bringing scripture to life.  Jesus says in John 15:1-2:

" I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit."

Vines won't produce really anything the first three years.  It takes time.  The first year it began to produce (3rd year) I let it grow.  Those vines were shooting out everywhere and growing fast.  My goodness it looked great.  But it did not produce much fruit at all.  I trimmed it a little and the next year it did a little better; but not much better.

The next year I pruned it so aggressively Brenda was concerned that I'd killed it.  Boy was she wrong!  That year it produced more fruit than the first two combined.  Then I learned, the more I pruned the vines that produced fruit, the larger the grapes grew.  The fruit of the vine became plump and plentiful verses puny and pitiful. 

Then I began to actually do some research to learn more about how to actually grow grapes.  One of the things I learned was that to grow good grapes it is recommended that you remove 80-90% of the previous years growth.  Think about that. That is aggressive.   

Now I learned that by experience!  Imagine if I'd paid attention to what the scripture said and also to what experienced vine-dressers taught before I started growing grapes.  Typical guy!  Trying to operate something without reading the owners manual first.  Sorry, I digressed!

So the Lord has been challenging me to apply these truths from His word to  my life and our ministry.  Here is what I have learned.

Joshua 17:14
 Then the children of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, "Why have you given us only one lot and one share to inherit, since we are a great people, inasmuch as the Lord has blessed us until now?"  NKJV

The word translated "lot" in the Hebrew means "portion or destiny."  

Are you dissatisfied with your lot in life?  Do you desire more?  Are you unhappy with the narrative of your life so far?  

The truth is, you actually have control of your destiny IF you will take it.  You can choose to stay a victim or you can choose to be the victor as you are the author of your life.  The question is, will you begin writing a new chapter or will you let others write your book for you?

Let's take a look at Joshua 17:14-18 as it provides three keys to changing your lot in life.