Daily Jewel

by Pastor J.T. Carnell McAlester, OK


Tree-ology”
“Wisdom is a tree of life to those who embrace her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed." – Proverbs 3:18 (New International Version)
I love trees! I love how they blossom in the spring – a vision of new life, a new beginning. I love them in the fall – a rainbow of colors to adorn the countryside. They are sturdy yet delicate. They are friendly and yet dangerous. (Most of us remember very vividly what happened a couple of years ago during the ice storm!) When we lived in Northwest Oklahoma the thing that I missed the most was the lack of trees in the area. It’s not that there were not trees – they just did not exist in great numbers as what we have in this area. One of my earliest memories of my childhood is of a large Elm tree that was in our yard on the farm I lived on in the Ozarks of Southern Missouri. Not only was it great for shade on a hot summer day but also my father had attached a swing on one of the branches. I spent many days either on that swing or around that tree. One day I returned home from school to discover that my “swing tree” was gone! It had been cut down – a victim of both disease and termites. In their effort to console me my parents tried to explain to me that if a strong enough wind came the tree that brought so much joy could have been a hazard to our home and even to our lives. I’m not sure if it brought any comfort at the time but I look back today and see that it was the right decision at the time. We must not forget that the condition of humanity stems from what Adam and Eve took from a tree – the forbidden fruit. But then the eternal salvation of our souls was provided by a tree – or more specifically from the One who hung on that tree at Calvary. Wisdom tells me that when I embrace Christ, when I cling to Him, embrace His laws and His love – my life will be blessed. I will have life the way it was meant to be lived. And all that is available to me and to all in this world thanks to a couple of pieces of wood. By the way, it was early spring when my father had my “swing tree” cut down. About June something happened that was unexpected. Mushrooms grew where the tree had fallen and my parents feasted on them throughout the summer. From something diseased came something beneficial. We are diseased as well, but Thanks be to God, Jesus took our disease – the sinful nature – and nailed it to a tree!
Pastor J. T. Carnell