Trees And Life

There's a tree that stands in the middle of our front yard, big, and leaf filled all summer long, the birds find refuge there, and the squirrels run up and down trying to score some bird food from the feeder that hangs from a branch. The tree is full of activity and provides shade and beauty to our home.

With the on set of Autumn, our lovely tree begins to change, the lush green leaves turn to a fiery red. A beautiful sight to behold yet a foreshadowing that a transformation is coming. As the winds blow and the weather turns cold, each leave tries to hold on, to maintain it's beauty. Nature takes its course eventually and the leaves are shed one by one, stripped away revealing the trees nakedness, and all that was happening within the mask of its beauty. Bird's nests and sneaky squirrel exposed, straggly weak branches intertwined with the strong. It looks dead and deserted.

But Wait! Though our tree looks to be dead, if you take the time to look further, your will see little signs of life holding on to each tendril of each branch. Life hidden in the tiniest little bud. Each bud holds the capacity to bring forth a whole new crop of fresh new leaves. after a season of cold, stark waiting. Amazingly the tree grows stronger in this time. Its branches thicken and grow and in the spring there seem to be more leaves that the year before.

God has so perfectly orchestrated the life of the tree. It just knows to go with the seasons, knows just what it needs to do to survive. When the winds blow it bends accordingly. if a branch dies it breaks off and the tree lets it go. It conserves energy when needed so that in times of drought it can use its reserves. It shares its space with others in nature and it provides shade and oxygen to the world around it.

The life of a tree can teach us a lot about our own life, so perfectly orchestrated by the creator, we go through seasons of beauty, and sorrow, dry periods and plenty. We gain our strength in the dry exposed times. In those times we are reminded of our neediness and turn to God for our strength, He works in us until it's time for us to bloom again. In our blooming time we share ourselves and the transformation that has taken place helps us to weather the next storm to come, we shelter others with our new found strength and we learn to bend and let go when necessary. The most reassuring thing that I like to remember is though different seasons in life are sure to come, they are also sure to end. So when we find ourselves in a particularly tough season, take heart and remember that it is just a season. Seeking God and relying on Him in faith will bring us through, be cause He loves us and made us and is continually transforming us to be more and more like Him.

Psalm 1:1-3 - Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sits in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.