Like Trees Planted by the Water

 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Colosians 2:7

What a beautiful, quiet place. I'd like to sit on that bench and just rest awhile. Quiet places can be a place to be rooted and established in the faith. But how? 

God's creation is given to help us see his plan, his care, to teach us. So what does this picture teach besides I want to have a seat under the tree?

Paul was well taught in the scriptures. He was a Pharisee of the Pharisees. I think in our verse he is reflecting back on Psalms 1:3

And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

The Lord plants us in His family, the church, where we can be taught by the word, nourished by the Living Water, the Holy Spirit, and bear fruit, spiritual fruit, in the world. 

A tree must put down roots to be firmly planted. The wind and rain must not be able to move it. Yes, it may lose a few limbs, but every tree profits from a little pruning, and so do we. Having our roots firmly planted in a church that teaches God's word will disciple us to be profitable servants.

A tree must receive water regularly, and so must we. We must include prayer, talking with the Lord, so His Holy Spirit can speak to us through His word, helping us to grow. 

To bear fruit, a tree must receive pollination, and so must we. We need Christian friends with whom we can discuss the scriptures, pray together, witness together, and give thanks for the fruit we bear. 

We all will face storms of different magnitudes at different times in our lives. When we are rooted in God's word, watered by His Spirit, and work together for the kingdom, we will be strengthened and bear much fruit. 

Father God, help me continue to grow, putting down my spiritual roots in the good soil of Your word, watered by Your living Spirit, and bearing fruit of You. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Where Does My Strength Come From?

 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Philippians 4:13

WOW! Look at those muscles. I wonder how long it took him to gain the strength to do a push-up with one hand, holding a weight, balancing on a weight, and on his toes. I wonder who coached him and how he was coached. I just don't have the mindset to chase that goal. But I do have another goal that includes a coach who will encourage, correct, and strengthen me. 

Looking back at our verse, I notice the word "which". In many translations and in our own mental gymnastics, that word is translated as "who". "I can do all things". I don't think that means one-handed pushups with weights, but maybe there are things to be done that will strengthen me even more than pushups. 

Paul lists things he had learned to do. 

• Be content
• To be abased - lowly, humble
• abound - live well with plenty
• suffer need - hungry, lonely

Paul knew how to weather through the hard times and enjoy the good times. He knew that Christ was the one who strengthened him. Christ was his coach to get him through. Had he done nothing, had he refused to be based, to live without plenty, to suffer need, Paul would not have been able to reach the goal Christ had set for him. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. Most likely, if you are reading this, you are a Gentile brought to the knowledge of Christ through first the preaching, the obedience of Paul. Christ was like a coach whose encouragement pushed him to continue in the work.  Once Paul overcame one obstacle, he could feel strengthened to push forward to another goal. If you follow the travels of Paul, you can see he went into dangerous places that were far from home. He couldn't take the next plane home when the ship wrecked. He didn't throw up his hands and quit when he was beaten near to death or thrown in jail. Paul knew Christ would meet his needs, strengthening him whether he was alone or had friends at his side. 

Reading all that Paul went through makes me wonder how I would handle an uncomfortable situation. I've been on mission trips to a third-world country. It's not how I'd want to spend the rest of my life, but I know those who do, and I know it is Christ who gives them the strength to keep going. 

Christ has a plan for each of us. Each of us faces challenges that will strengthen our walk for Him. We must keep pressing toward the goal and never give up.

Father God, strengthen me when I am weak. Encourage me when I feel down or disheartened. Help me look to you and to others whom you have helped. Help me be like Paul, weathering the storms and enjoying the blessings in the calm. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Adam and Eve (You and Me) in a Garden

 

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Phillipians 2:12

As I pondered on this verse, I noticed Paul was saying you work without me or anyone having to watch over you. That's a good worker who can do the job without someone looking over their shoulder. So I wondered where were people first given a job with instructions and allowed to complete that job without a watchful eye?

Adam and Eve were first placed in a garden.  They were instructed to keep it, to take care of it, care for the animals and to fill the earth with children. Big job, but then God left them to work coming by to talk in the cool of the evening. Things were going well until Satan deceived Eve into believing God was hiding something from her. After the fall, she and Adam were still expected to work the land but there would be added troubles, briars and weeds. 

Now in our verse Paul tells us to work out our  own salvation with fear and trembling. Do we need to work for salvation?  No, Jesus already paid for our salvation.  Should we be afraid and tremble all the day and night? Let's consider the old language. Fear can also be awe, and trembling can be a reverance. Because we serve an awesome God we can reverantly serve Him without someone looking over our shoulder. Whether it's Monday or Sunday our work should be the same. Not a work for salvation but of pleasing the One who saved us.

Let's look at the verse again. Work. The first work was in a garden and so was the second work outside the garden. So what does gardening involve?

• Cultivate - we need to cultivate our lives, plow up our hearts so God can do a work.
• Plant - plant the word of God in our hearts so we can grow and share with others
• Weed - pull out those things that don't belong in the life of a Christian.
• Water - let the Holy Spirit pour into our lives and show us the blessings of a Christ filled life
• Harvest - God gives the harvest but we reap the blessings. A harvest produces seed to plant again. Those seeds may reach our family, our friends, our community, our nation, and the world. 

Father God, help us work to live the joyous life you have in store for us. Help us study to show ourselves approved, pull out those things in our lives that hinder our walk with you, and allow you Holy Spirit to encourage and bless us that we might enjoy the harvest you desire to give. In Jesus' name. Amen.

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