Fruitful Trees
By Debbonnaire Kovacs, submitted May 13, 2015
They are like trees planted by streams of water,
bearing fruit in due season,
with leaves that do not wither;
everything they do shall prosper. Ps 1:3
When I was young, I believed that the truly dedicated Christian life would be continuously fruitful, continuously victorious, and reasonably balanced. That is to say, I never was naïve enough, even as a child, to believe that life on this planet would be problem-free. I knew there would be ups and downs; I just thought if you could maintain your dedication, “stay your mind on him,” those ups and downs would be less extreme than otherwise.
Let’s just say…life wasn’t. Not balanced, not particularly victorious, and only erratically fruitful.
One day I was reading Psalm 1, and it dawned on me that I had it all wrong. According to this verse, life is actually meant to have seasons. Like the planet. “Seedtime and harvest, summer and winter.” God promised with the rainbow that those wouldn’t perish from the earth. Was it possible he meant the same for human lifespans?
What does it take to be a truly dedicated, fruitful Christian?
Like [a] tree planted by streams of water…
In the Middle East, then as now, water is a big deal. Well, it’s a big deal everywhere, but in arid climates it’s not taken for granted. To be truly healthy and fruitful, a tree needs to be planted near water. This means that even when the summer sun has dried up the surface water, the tree’s roots can still reach an aquifer.
Jesus likened the Holy Spirit to “living water,” that is, an artesian spring, flowing from deep within. What are the ways that you nurture your awareness of and participation in that welling of eternal life?
…bearing fruit in due season…
This was the line that startled me. No fruit tree bears all year. They bear for a few weeks each year. And some require bad weather, too. Apples, for instance, don’t bear well if they don’t get at least 30 days below freezing.
Huh.
What would be the “due season” of the soul? Are there times when we are meant to be producing fruit and times when we are meant to be resting? Then, of course, there are the in-between seasons, of preparation for bearing (budding, flowering, being pollinated, losing flowers, and beginning hard little fruits) and of weariness after bearing. Some fruit trees look pretty ragged after bearing, especially if they bore a bumper crop.
I wonder if that’s why Jesus sometimes wandered off into the hills? How do you seek nurture before, during, and after fruiting times in your life?
…with leaves that do not wither…
See, this is what threw me off. I thought it meant you stayed green, so to speak, all year. But fruit trees are generally (though not always) deciduous. And even evergreens go through a season of dropping yellow needles and being rejuvenated. Right now, in May, my hollies all look pretty scruffy, with nearly half their leaves yellow and tons of them on the ground. No barefooting around here right now!
Is this a “due season” thing, too? Does it just mean you don’t wither from actual disease or drought, since you have that artesian spring nearby? Can you think of times when your “leaves” have “withered,” and after the fact, you can discern whether it was a timely and expected withering or not? If not, what can you do to seek healing for spiritual disease, or seek more water?
… everything they do shall prosper.
Everything? Boy, it sure doesn’t seem like it! Could it be that this, too, has a different definition than I thought?
Something to consider, and pray about.
Those of us who reside in the United States undoubtedly live in one of the most money-centric cultures in history, and we are tempted to define “prosperity” by the width of our financial heels. Ask any adult in America today, “What are you worth?” and the answer in some way will relate to one’s bank account, investments, and real estate holdings. One’s spouse, kids, scenery, faith, garden, and pets will tend to rate much lower on the scale of worth-definers.
What then is prosperity in the eyes of the Lord, who grants us growth like trees? I believe he grants us prosperity according to our talents. The writer will be blessed with good ideas and human contacts, resulting in sale of manuscripts and at least an adequate-if-marginal existence; the money manager will encounter situations to exercise that talent, or become an investor or broker; the gifted artist will see inspiration, execution, and sales holding steady and even on the rise; the minister or Bible teacher/worker will find ways to better serve a stable, growing flock.
But I think we will have problems understanding this passage, so long as we see financial prosperity as the primary expression of God’s blessings. It’s one of the blessings, and the Lord does not want to see us begging for bread. But for some of us, the worst personal tragedy would be to find ourselves inundated with the level of personal wealth that would distract us from our mission(s) in life and solid use of our native and God-given acquired talents…..
Thank you! God bless you as you seek to share on your own site.