DEEPLY ROOTED

Our small group last night was studying about forgiveness. I found a nugget in the book I want to share with you.

Psalm 92:13 - Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God."

When a fruit tree is put in the ground it has to face rainstorms, hot sun, and wind. If a young tree could talk, it might say, "Please get me out of here! Put me in a place where there is no sweltering heat or windy storms!"

If the gardener listened to the tree, he would actually harm it. Trees endure the hot sun and rainstorms by sending their roots down deeper. The adversity they face is eventually the source of great stability. The harshness of the elements surrounding them causes them to seek another source of life. They will one day come to the place where even the greatest of windstorms cannot affect their ability to produce fruit.

One of the hardest things to do in this life is stay where you are planted. I like to run, to withdraw, to fight back when adversity or accusation or attack comes my way. I have prayed a LOT of "Please get me out of here!" type prayers. But all I'm doing is resisting the very thing God has sent to grow me, to mature me.

The last few months for me have been a back and forth tug-of-war with God, trying to stay planted in quite a bit of adversity - spiritual, relational, you name it. But through it all, God has been guiding us and strengthening us for what is about to come. Hard lessons learned; God's severe mercy. But necessary.

So in 1 week God will move this big old tree to a new garden in the "house of the Lord," a new place of ministry. My prayer is that the roots will begin deepening again, able to withstand a new type of challenge, of adversity. Thank you for joining me in this journey.