June 2009

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“For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, And My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.”
Isaiah 65:22b


Trees

Trees

 

“Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it.  Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice before the Lord.” Psalm 96:12

 

“All the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” Isaiah 55:12b

 

What a delightful thought! Applauding trees, rejoicing trees!  In which season do trees rejoice? I believe there is something for a tree to rejoice about in every season. Perhaps a spring tree rejoices when it feels the swell of new buds or the first grasp of a returning robin’s tiny claws on its branches.  In summer, a tree might delight at the fullness of its leafy, green cap rustling in the breeze, and in its ability to draw nourishment from the fertile earth and midsummer rains.  Maybe the colors of autumn are the tree’s reward for its willingness to submit to rest and be still at the Creator’s command. In our Midwestern climate, winter’s cold brings deciduous trees to their barest, most vulnerable state, but only in that leafless state are the bones of its structure, its true form, apparent.

 

“For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, And My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.” Isaiah 65:22b

 

            Huge, old trees speak of time and endurance, strength and shelter.  I remember standing with my son-in-law and daughter beneath the old silver maple tree in our yard when I related the tragic news of her uncle’s death.  We cried, and after a time, Nate looked up through the branches of that huge tree and, with tear-filled eyes said, “I love that tree.”  We knew just what he meant. Something so tall, so alive, so sturdy, was a God-given comfort on that sad, spring day.

 

            I found the following quote on a box of Celestial Seasonings Canadian Maple Tea.

 

  “I planted a maple tree next to the first house I owned, just a skinny runt of a thing….It seemed far off in the future before that tree would amount to anything.  But when I went back there 40 years later, I couldn’t believe my eyes.  The tree was towering over the house, the queen of the neighborhood.  In the meantime, I’d become an old man.  This was the first time I ever really believed that the world will go on just fine when I’m gone…Ever since then, I’ve been living in tree time.  It’s a fine way to live.”  Sean O'Callahan

 

            Living in "tree time" frees us to rejoice in newness of life, delight in productive times, happily submit in seasons of rest, and become as transparent as winter trees.  To me, living in "tree time" means living with an eternal view, one not limited by my brief time on earth, or by my own shortsighted understanding of God’s plan.  A plan that includes trees.  

            A tree of choice in the Garden, a tree of sacrifice on Golgotha, a tree of life springing up in each of us who have accepted Jesus' sacrifice.  A life which enables us to reach our hands to the heavens and bend and sway in the breeze of the Creator’s will.  A life which inspires us to clap our hands and rejoice like trees before the Lord.

 

Daye Phillippo

May 2009