By Pastor Don Schatz
Bent Truth
You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud Link
“…that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.”
Ephesians 3:17 New Revised Standard Version
What is the first thought that comes to you when you look at today’s picture? The first thought I had when I saw this tree in a St. Louis Park was, “That tree has great roots.”
This tree has experienced wind, and likely still does. The beating of that wind, the steady force of the strong movement of air in the wind, bent it. We might not notice if the tree were only a sapling, say two feet tall. But a mature oak tree, permanently bent from its years of withstanding the gusty trials of its life, that gets our attention. How has it remained upright, what makes it possible for it to still live, not to topple over, not to succumb to the brutal onslaught that has permanently altered its true shape? Roots. Good roots. Strong roots. A network of roots that go deep, and far in the ground to sustain it, to make it possible for it to still strive.
Do the winds of life, not a sprite zephyr, but the strong winds of opposition, bad luck, struggles, illness, pain and discomfort ever assail you? Do you feel as though you resemble this tree, permanently bent? And yet, here you are still. Are your roots grounded in Christ-love? Does faith which courses through you like sap in a tree give you life, inspire you to sing God’s praises in all times and circumstances? I hope so. I hope you know the Jesus who dwells in the heart, even as you grow deep, strong, supporting, life-giving roots in him. All winds, even the winds of time, are powerless to defeat you.
Spend some time looking at different trees today. Look at the ground around them. Unseen, their roots give life, sustain life, support the structure of the tree and enable it to wave its branches, even in winter, as a wave-offering of thanksgiving to the Lord. Then look in a mirror. Christ does the same for you.
Copyright Family of Christ Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado
