Amazing Trees
Have you heard of the upside down tree? The huge baobab tree here in Southern Africa has the unique feature of looking like it is topsy turvy with its roots sticking up in the air.
Although all trees may not have the radical look of the baobab, each species has its fascinating uniqueness. And just think of all the products that we get from trees: fruit, paper, furniture, food, healing ointments and syrups, just to mention a few.
There are 60,065 tree species in world. Every tree, like every human, is unique.
Trees in the Bible
The Bible makes significant mention of trees – literally and figuratively. The Garden of Eden had two very famous trees; the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life which God has kept cultivated in heaven’s greenhouses until the New Jerusalem is established (Rev. 22:2).
But the Scripture also pictures a person as a tree. What kind of tree would you be? A person who loves God’s Word is a healthy tree (Ps. 1). King Nebuchadnezzar was a tree that got cut down (Dan. 4). Jesus likened people to trees, and said you can tell what kind of tree they are by their fruit (Mt. 7:15-19).
Grow Down to Grow Up
If you know anything about trees, you know that what is happening under the surface is even more important than what you see; the health of what you see is determined by what is happening down in the roots.
The same is true in the Christian life; what is happening in the privacy of our hearts and minds determines what is happening outwardly.
In the soil of my mind is Truth about God’s character, God’s work (in the world, in sending Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world, even His work in my life), and God’s promises.
But in the soil of my mind there are also Lies of the world, the flesh and the devil driving fears, setting goals, promoting values, pushing attitudes about myself, about other ethnicities or classes, and about God.
My HEART is my core wanter that chooses where my roots are going to grow to draw up nutrients … either drawing on Truth or drawing on Lies. The Truth that my heart draws up feeds my THINKING, what I meditate on in my free time.
My THINKING in turn shapes my DESIRES; here is where the tree branches out – I have desires, drives, for what kind of wife I want to be, what kind of mom, my desires as a businessperson, desires for what I want to achieve as an athlete, desires for the depth of my walk with the Lord, desires of how I want my kids to turn out, desires for our holidays, cars, and homes.
Those desires are fleshed out in my BEHAVIORS, moment by moment, enjoying things that line up with my desires, getting frustrated with things that are against them. Desires determine how I spend or save my money, how I perform at work, how often I share Christ or live like Jesus (hey, I am bearing some fruit!), how I interact with my teens, how I serve at church, when I get up and what I do first thing in the morning. Desires drive behavior.
EMOTIONS are the upper leaves, the tip of the iceberg. Toxic emotions flow all the way up from toxins in the heart, through bad thinking that skews my desires and can blend together with some other bad behaviors.
Then Comes The Test
Notice that when you look at both sides of the tree, they seem similar. A Christian can be drawing on lies that feed everything they do, and their leaves still seem pretty green. But then the winds, the waves, and the storms come. Then comes the HEAT.
It seems that only in the heat can we slowly see what a believer’s roots have been feeding on. Jeremiah 17:5-10 speaks of two trees.
The first tree is in vv. 5-6: “Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord [feeding on the lies of the world]. He is like a shrub in the desert and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.
The green is gone; the leaves just fall away because they were fed by lies, not truth.
The second tree is in vv. 8-9: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
Going For Thriving and Fruitful!
So, what is God’s desire for your life, a perfect life in His way of thinking?
- I must be born again by tapping into the Living Water (faith in Jesus Christ) – this requires a personal response to the gospel.
- I must be rooted, anchored and sustained by the Truth about God’s character, God’s work, and God’s promises – this requires a commitment to read His Word personally, to get a study Bible to read the notes, to listen purposefully and take notes during Bible studies and messages, maybe to listen to podcasts – whatever it takes to know our God well.
- My heart must constantly draw up Water and Truth to renew my mind, control my desires, and produce fruit – as the heat comes, it is critical for me to let go of lies I have been believing, keep my roots in the water and the Word of God, and in some cases, to even produce my best fruit in severe conditions.
While these principles affect any behavior in your life, they certainly affect your ability to be th(i)nkful. That’s why the th(i)nkful logo (bottom) is a tree. Even with the heat bearing down on me, I know my God’s character, works, and promises and can think thanks in whatever circumstance He places me.
What Type of Tree Are You?
You may not be like the African baobab tree with your ‘crown’ looking like your ‘roots,’ but what would your ‘roots’ look like? Could your existing ‘roots’ support a mature tree that will stand strong in the heat and drought?
As we perused the variety of fabrics, my eyes caught this green fabric with something written on it. Could it be?? Was it really?? Yes, it was a green fabric with Psalm 23 printed on it. The whole Psalm!!! So cool. Julia and Elly both were amazed. What a God-print!
Developing God-Prints
If an investigator sees a woman across the way leave her glass at a table, he will not see her fingerprints on the glass from where he is sitting. He will believe they are there, and then investigate so that he can see what he already believes. Jesus said in John 20:29, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet still believe.” Augustine and Anselm echoed this same idea – believe to see, not see to believe.
Once an investigator has lifted a fingerprint, he or she returns to the lab to compare the prints with the database. The most potent database of God’s fingerprints is in His Word. God’s Word is alive (Hebrews 4:12). You can read descriptions of His prints and see the circumstances in which they were detected and undetected by people and nations over a period of 1600 years!
Choose to trust the Lord’s character even when you cannot understand His ways. His fingers have shaped your path, so His fingerprints are there when you commit to searching for them. Think thanks in every God-print, joyful or difficult or frustrating.
The baboon seemed so matter-of-fact, but he was a thief. So is ingratitude – he steals away the good things you have all around you. The things he leaves are polluted with his dirty feet, hands, and bottom; he coats your wonderful lozenges with saliva so they’re no good anymore.
We were not trying to feed the baboons. We were getting ready to have breakfast and I had not even gotten the flatbread out of the plastic bag. 🙂 But the owners of the chalet knew that baboons must be kept out, must not be encouraged, and if need be, must be shot dead. So it is with ingratitude – keep it out, do not feed it, and if it is making a habit of entering your mind at will, you need to shoot it dead.
What’s just as noteworthy is that our first black captain, Siya Kolisi, led the team to the top. He is a Jesus-follower and rose from very humble beginnings.
He “fell off the wagon” a bit during his teen years even though he identified himself as a Christian. Eventually, he chose to be grateful for what he had, and began to work hard.
The Choice of Gratitude
Let’s do an experiment. Using your left index finger, point to your brain. Now using your right index finger, point to your mind.
This is an actual endoscope photograph of neurons that have touched so many times, they have now formed synapses and connected. Whatever the thoughts were, they have now become a pattern … for better or worse.
I once saw a Hoopoe like this one pick up a worm that it found and promptly give it to another bird beside it. Fancy head plumage and a willingness to share – surely a winning combination! 🙂
Andrew Chan was one of the ringleaders of the Bali Nine, a
Finishing With Worship
But in the first phrase, the Psalmist states he will sing praise to the name of the Lord. In fact, devout Jews refer to God only as “Hashem” – the Name. Proverbs 18:10 likens the name of the Lord to a strong tower; a person who runs to it i
God is this way by design, hiding Himself from the casual browser and revealing Himself only to those who truly dig and work hard to discover Him for themselves, like those who search for golden rocks in South Africa’s mines.
My life in the will of God right now is a bit crazy. We have two “homes” – an apartment in Amanzimtoti, South Africa, and a mission-owned house in Atlanta to which we return twice a year while we train new missionaries. It is bizarre to leave home … to go back home!
The Apostle Paul writes that the message about Jesus should be at home in us profusely, filling every room, like that Yankee Candle. His Word should fill and flavor our thinking, influencing what we want, what we mediate on, and eventually what we say and do.
The Apostle Paul used this wardrobe principle in “the twin epistles” – Ephesians and Colossians. If you are following Jesus, 
How often do you put on gratitude? Do you know where it is in your closet? Do you even own the garment? You might need to go shopping.
Romans 12:2 says we are transformed by renewing the mind – learning to think God’s thoughts. Life isn’t about me; it’s about God. He is not my genie; I am His servant. Earth is the unbeliever’s only heaven, and the believer’s only hell. Hard times aren’t a disaster; God designs them to refine, strengthen, and improve me as an image-bearer of the Creator.
th(i)nkful 