One year we decided to purchase one of those “living Christmas trees” as a lesson for our children concerning good stewardship of the earth. According to the instructions, we kept it watered all of December and January, then planted it in the yard in late February. By September, it was as dead as a doornail. In late November, I went out and tested the branches to see if there was any life. Nothing. The branches just snapped off. I figured it was beyond hope – a failed lesson. I also decided to leave it for now and dig it up in the spring to throw away.
On Easter morning the following year, I woke up and began to prepare for church. I thought “It’s getting warmer, so I’d better yank out that tree.” So I took a look out the window to assess the amount of work to be done. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The whole tree was covered in soft green shoots. The tree was alive! What started off as a stewardship lesson was suddenly transformed into a resurrection story. Easter is about transforming death into life. What once was dead is now alive. What was once hopeless is now promise. Easter morning changes all things and gives to us the surety of eternal life through Jesus Christ. So celebrate! Eternal life is yours!
Mark Harmon
3/30/2015 08:56:21 am
We had a similar experience with a dwarf apple tree. It appeared to be dead and about the time I decided to give up on it and dig it up, I noticed new growth that was emerging. It turns out the dead part was a graft that was part of the dwarfing process. The tree grew into a full size apple tree that produced tons of apples for years afterwards. The new life in the tree didn't really flourish until I cut off what had been grafted on. Sometimes, for us to fully experience the new life in Christ, we have to remove those things that have been grafted on to us by our culture, experiences and just plain old sinful nature. Comments are closed.
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This blog consists of reflections written by the minister each week for the Sunday bulletin. We hope that you enjoy the musings! Archives
January 2020
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