Jesus describes becoming a Christian as a new birth (see John 3:3-5). Picture yourself as an apple tree, but you would really like to bear peaches. You can prune, or someone could attach peaches with wire to your branches. But apples will keep coming. If you want peaches, you have to dig up the apple tree and plant a peach tree.
New roots are needed for new fruit. All we do is modify the same tree when we make resolutions and commitments to pray more, go to church more consistently, or resolve to stop bad behavior. The root needs to be pulled up. A new tree is needed.
-Quote from The Emotionally Healthy Church by Peter Scazzero
Poiema 