There's a description of iconic, remote parts of my home country of Canada that have been joked about for years: "All you find there are trees, rocks and water." I'm actually grateful for these things.
Two of these three are either alive or life-giving. Whenever I visit cities or locations where trees are rare, I feel impoverished at some level.
In January, I took up the challenge of reading one chapter of the biblical book of Proverbs per day. I noticed during this time of focused reading that six of the central chapters each contained a metaphor relating to either a fountain of life or a tree of life.
The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life (Prov 10).
The fruit of justice is a tree of life (Prov 11).
A longing fulfilled is a tree of life (Prov 13).
The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life (Prov 14).
A healing word is a tree of life (Prov 15).
Understanding is a fountain of life (Prov 16).
Trees and fountains of water are essential to our well-being, as are good words, reverence for God, understanding, and justice. Despite all the hype around stock market performance, AI technology, building booms, military spending, and money making schemes, what we all really need are things that nourish LIFE, physical, relational, and spiritual.
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| Photo taken August 2017, New Brunswick |
May I ask you to join me in orienting yourself to the things Solomon and other writers call trees of life and fountains of life? No need to click or subscribe, to pay or donate. The hard work of being people of goodwill and integrity is what is being asked of us.
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