There’s not much that stirs my soul quite so much as the simplicity of a tree blowing in a strong wind. All those leaves, the growth, the color & life, the resiliency, the acceptance of the sun & wind & warmth & cold…it moves me. The thing about trees is that they are rooted. If those roots go down deep & have been steadily nourished over time, there’s not much that can budge a tree. We too, need our roots to sink down deep into rich soil. If we are founded in Him, fed by His Word, then, we too shall be unmoved by the storms & circumstantial weather of life. The songwriter Dennis Jernigan sings about this beautifully: “Though the winds may blow, He is my shelter….He is constantly watching over me.”

 

In Proverbs 3, Solomon speaks of wisdom being “a tree of life to those who embrace her”. It seems that’s a promise for us as well, at least in two senses:

1. We can embrace the wisdom of God, & be given Life….maybe even a taste of the Life that was offered in the Garden of Eden, where that tree was originally found.
2. As we pursue that Life, we can share its wisdom with others, offering them to chance to embrace it too, becoming shelter for them as they root themselves in Him.  

The prophet Isaiah assures us in Chapter 62: “This will be for the Lord’s renown, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.”