“In Him we live and move and have our being.” (1)
Walking silently in a forest, immersed in the beauty of your surroundings, you become inseparable from the trees and wildflowers encountered along the path. If you stand quietly, you can hear the rustle of an animal, the call of a bird, or the sound of a stream making its way over rocks and small waterfalls. One of my favorite pastimes in the fall is to stand and listen to the leaves floating down from the canopy and touching the ground. One day when the trail passed through a grove of beech trees, there were so many leaves falling it felt like it was snowing.
I believe we are supposed to feel an integral part of the Lord’s larger creation. Our heritage started in the garden of Paradise. When I am hiking or just leisurely following a woodland path, I feel part of something bigger than myself. Perhaps this is why I am drawn to the mountains. They seem unshakable and a present reminder of the way the earth was when He originally cloaked it with trees, plants and wildflowers.
In the nature preserve near me, numerous old-world trees grow to heights so high you cannot see the top of the canopy except in winter. I love encountering these ancient structures which have survived the storms of life. Their roots extend deep into the soil, across the path and beyond. I’m always amazed when one falls. Their trunks seem so solid and immovable. Like the trees, if we stay “rooted and built up in Him,” we will also stand the tests of time. (2)
When one of these giants falls, a vast space opens in the canopy and other smaller trees receive the light to flourish. I always wonder what happens to the animals that have inhabited the trees. Squirrel nests perched so precariously high seem vulnerable. I’m sure there are owl nests and bird nests as well that are affected when a tree falls.
Often, when this happens, you see the core is rotten. Over time, the decay weakens the tree. We often use the phrase “rotten to the core” to describe someone who seems irredeemable. Scripture warns us not to be taken in by “hollow and deceptive philosophy which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” (3) But unlike the tree, God can heal and offer a person new life. Such a blessing to have a Creator who isn’t satisfied until He makes you whole.
There is one tree I pass along the path that one wonders how it is still standing. Its hollowed-out base has a marvelous opening for animals to snuggle inside away from the elements. But it’s only a matter of time before it falls. We who have the Holy Spirit living in us will never have a hollowed-out body, regardless of what disease strikes us. Nor will we fall with strong winds, for the Creator will ensure He completes our sanctification.
We are in Him, and He is in us. We live and move and have our being, our very essence and purpose, in Him. He plans our work on earth before our birth. “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you….” (4)
Our purpose is greater than the trees. It is even more beautiful than the wildflowers and mountain vistas. We encounter his work in other people and encourage them along the way. Those we meet can someday be beautiful in His sight. We remember who created us and who we live for. We are not merely a piece of the landscape, but part of the heavenly purpose to draw all people to Him. Like the tree. which lifts its branches to the sky, we lift our hands in praise of the One who made it all.
“But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruits to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.”
2 Thessalonians 2:13
- Acts 17:28 ESV
- Colossians 2:7 ESV
- Colossians 2:8 ESV
- Jeremiah 1:5 NIV
