It was planted in good soil beside abundant waters, so that it would produce branches and bear fruit, and become a splendid vine.
Ezekiel 17:8
The marsh is filled to its brim. New rains have poured life back into it. Last fall’s drought, seeped energy from the springs of waters which bubble from beneath the earth. By September, no water could be seen in the parched marsh. I wonder what would become of the wildlife.
There’s an old willow which is rooted deep on the marsh’s edge. It was replaced three times when my son, Ryan, was a child. Bought with gift money from his grandfather, he was determined to one day climb its drooping branches. But year-after-year a willow failed to grow, until the third tree finally took root. Now, the massive tree towers nearly as stately as our pine trees.
Though the marsh has dried up several times in the past 30 years, the willow seems to have flourished despite the weather. It’s roots are deep within the earth grasping the nourishment needed to stay healthy.
People’s habits are like the dried marsh and thriving tree. There are times we ignore what is best for us physically, or spiritually. It takes determination to live a healthy life; a nutritional diet can bring fuller life. How is your spiritual life? Is it like an empty marsh which lies dormant? Or is a flourishing tree whose roots are deep within the ground?
Patti Wolf 