Blessed is the person who trust in the Lord...
God will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought and never failst to bear fruit.
Jeremiah 17:7-8
Horticulturists tell us that letting the ground dry out throughly before watering deeply helps root growth and that light winds will strengthen the trunks of young saplings, the trees' root sink deep into the earth.
Years later, the trees will be huge, sturdy testaments to horticultural wisdom. They will be able to withstand harsh winds and water deprivation, because those little adversities will have made the trees strong enough to do so.
A life whose lttle problems have caused it to grow deep roots of faith in God is like a tree that stands strong, despite the storms that beat against it. It may bend and sway when pounded by the elements, but it only gorws deeper roots and a sturdier trunk as a result.
Little troubles send your faith deep-so you grow able to survive the big ones.
~The pocket devotional for Women
Honor Books 2002
And "if the roots are deep and strong"...the tree will provide shelter and will help to nurture a growing "forest" that is still young and vulnerable (in its faith). Sound like ministry? I think so. Duncan.
ReplyDelete