Day at a tiny vineyard

Today I went to Rob Macolmnson's farm to help prune the grape vines. I've been learning that vines are a symbol of a faith or belief,-a type of religion if you will. Being Good Friday, there's nothing I thought could have been cooler.
The winding grape vines looked full and promising to me- the non-farmer type. I thought they looked fine. I thought we could just leave them and they'd be full of fruit come summer.
"No, all of this has to be cut off. It has to be cut back to the old wood." [essentially the stem of the plant]
"All of it?" I asked.
"Yeah, all of it. Fruit only grows on the new growth. So if you want a lot produced you have to cut off everything."
"Well then, how does it ever spread? How do you get big vineyards?"
"Well you can leave a few branches, if it's kinda filling in a bare spot. But it won't produce anything... But you have to look at these branches here, all the way back to the old wood. And if there are a couple together, you have to choose which one and cut the other, it's too much competition. "
Oh man! As they say in the south, That'll preach!!!!
I've been going through a lot of pruning these past few months,- job, ministry, relationship. Everything has been cut back to the "old wood." But God is showing me that the competition had to go. My fruit will not grow this year on last year's growth. It's time to start afresh. Painful as it is to be the one getting pruned, it comes with a promise of more abundant fruit to come.
Look at this beautiful Scripture. While I realize Jesus was refering to this in a spirititual context, it feels like a personal explaination to my current situation in life:
"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. You have already been pruned for greater fruitfulness by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful apart from me. "Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. Anyone who parts from me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. But if you stay joined to me and my words remain in you, you may ask any request you like, and it will be granted! My true disciples produce much fruit. This brings great glory to my Father.
John 15:1-8
Read that last part again:
My true disciples bear much fruit. This brings much glory to the Father.
In spite of the pain, Lord, I want to bring you glory.