The Big Sandy Mountaineer -

A few years ago, I participated in the Master Gardener class that was offered at the Big Sandy Library. Learning about plants, soil, landscaping, and other topics was quite informative, but I think the best part of the class for me was learning about how plants live/operate. In more than a few occasions, I spotted tidbits of information that helped me understand the teachings of Jesus in a clearer light. I also caught a few life alessons. One that has hung with me and comes to mind often relates to the rings trees develop as they age. Most people know that you can determine the age of a tree by counting its rings. Trees grow a new ring every year. It’s particularly interesting that the outermost ring is where the tree is actually alive. Water and nutrients travel up and down the tree only in the outermost rings. The inner parts of the tree slowly stop moving nutrients and become “heart wood,” which supports the tree. There’s a powerful parallel in this phenomenon to people and how they grow spiritually. Throughout our lives we grow spiritually as God puts us in various situations or we face trials that cause us to grow.

If you examine tree , you can learn about the conditions from the various years based on the size of the rings. In years with more rain and optimal growth conditions the rings will be larger. They’ll be smaller in years when conditions are poor. For people, spiritual growth isn’t based on times of plenty or shortfall, but rather based on connection and intimacy with God. The more we learn to depend on and live like Jesus, the more we grow. Often, this takes place in difficulty and hardship. When life is hard, we turn to God for help and lean on Him. When life is easy, we tend to forget him. One of the blessings of hardship is that it provides opportunity to lean on Him at a level that is difficult or impossible otherwise.

Regardless of what our life is like as we grow from year to year, our past growth becomes the “heartwood” of our lives. It supports us and enables us to become more and more like Jesus. However, our past is exactly that: past. Our spiritual growth and life is happening now. Like trees, our outer rings are where we are alive. We are spiritually alive now, as we walk with Jesus today. We have to keep growing and deepening our relationship with Christ. Otherwise our spiritual life withers. If you cut the outer ring of a tree all the way, the tree will die. If we walk away from God now, our past doesn’t keep us alive spiritually. Fortunately, regardless of falling away or into sin, we can always return to Him and be forgiven. God’s grace is available to restore us. This means that our times of spiritual failings don’t have to be severed rings. They can be the next ring in our ongoing growth. God blesses us with the opportunity to return to Him and be restored at any time. The same is true of our choosing to come to Him in the first place. We cannot run anywhere He will not find us. We cannot out-sin His willingness to forgive. We can live and grow in Him, establishing new rings and maturity. We must simply come to Him to start.