This morning I attended a meeting of the East Conference pastors in Bolingbrook. Our host pastor shared a devotion on trees as part of a Lenten Study, “For the Beauty of the Earth.” The chapter she discussed had some really interesting points. One is that trees are always giving. They take in the carbon dioxide that humans exhale and return it as the oxygen we need to live. Another point she made was that a barren Oak tree has the exact same pattern as the bronchial “tree” in our pulmonary system. Then we went around the room and shared stories about trees that have been important in our lives. Many shared about trees they had in their back yards as children. They described what it felt like to climb high in the branches or sit in their shade on a hot summer day.
So, trees play a very important part in our lives. Something we might not realize is how important they are in our spiritual lives as well. There are many images in the Bible about trees but two come quickly to mind. First, is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden. God provided Adam and Eve with every tree to eat from except that one. We all know how that turned out… because they ate the forbidden fruit, we all are destined to die for eternity. The second tree and probably the most important one was the tree that provided the wood for the cross that Jesus was crucified on. By his death on that tree, he took away our sin and gave us eternal life. So, trees give us what we need to live… oxygen. But that one special tree that bore our Savior gives us what we need to live for eternity.
See you Sunday!