Trees certainly are resilient. Even in areas where tornadoes, hurricanes and other windstorms are prevalent, there still are many large and aged trees. Not surprisingly, God knew what He was doing when He created trees, with thicker branches near the trunk and thinner branches near the top. Trees are well-balanced, and even the material they are made out of is more flexible than we imagine. Think of a palm tree on an island during a hurricane. Rarely do the trunks snap regardless of wind, though the palms can bend almost to the ground! An old proverb reminds us that, “Trees that don’t bend with the wind won’t last the storm.”
This principle can be applied just as easily to Christians. Many pastors have preached on the concept, “Blessed are the flexible, for they will not be broken.” Brokenness is necessary when we are seeking the Lord, for it involves letting go of our pride. Pride is what keeps us from accepting Jesus into our hearts, for instead of following His plan in our lives, without that required humbleness, we still desire to control our own lives and destinies. Though after that brokenness occurs and we give our lives to Him, God desires for us to flexible, like trees in the wind.
1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
Psalm 1:1-3
Notice in the psalm above that all seasons in the tree’s life are not fruit-producing. Yet even when not producing fruit, the tree shall prosper, regardless of the occasional storms. Some trees have been subject to so many windstorms that instead of standing upright, their growth is in the leeward direction, a natural protection against the wind. In the same manner, God protects us by helping us to grow in different directions. Those differences help us to minister to different people. Some Christians in their rigidity draw sweeping generalizations that we all need to follow God in the same manner. That would be like Paul judging that everyone else must have a Damascus Road experience. Yet the Lord draws each of us to Him in a very unique and personal way. Whether we find that brokenness through addiction, another religion, a failed marriage, the death of a loved one or simply, the realization that we have been created by a God who loves us, the path to God begins when humbleness enters the picture.
12 The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,
He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Those who are planted in the house of the LORD
Shall flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They shall still bear fruit in old age;
They shall be fresh and flourishing,
15 To declare that the LORD is upright;
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.
Psalm 92:12-15
God cannot change, as it is against His nature. His plan for our salvation has been in place since before the foundation of the world, yet He allows us freedom of choice. With that choice, each of us must decide whether to follow self or God, and as believers, even when our choices are erroneous, God leads us back to the path He has planned for us. Our Lord is resolute, but not rigid, and with that perspective, we need to bend. Without that flexibility, our trunks will snap in the storm. Though He cannot change, we have to change, and need to! Are there storms in your life? Know that God never puts you anywhere to harm you, though He might use the wind to help you grow in a protective direction!
For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,
Which spreads out its roots by the river,
And will not fear when heat comes;
But its leaf will be green,
And will not be anxious in the year of drought,
Nor will cease from yielding fruit.
Jeremiah 17:8
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