Three things:
1. It has to have trees. Big trees. Preferably live oaks.
2. It has to be on a paved road. Gravel does not count.
3. It can’t be more than 30 minutes from town.
That was my list, and I was sticking to it. As Brad and I drove countless hours all over McLennan, Coryell, and Bosque counties searching for land for our new home, I kept reminding him of my list. Over and over and over again. I was not comprising.
Ok, that’s not completely true. I would have comprised on #2 and #3, but I was standing firm on #1. I wanted trees. And lots of them. Every place we lived before didn’t have trees, except the ones we planted. And, of course, then we’d move and someone else would have big trees.
You can guess what I said. “This is it! This is the place! Look at all the trees! Honey, this place is perfect. It has so much potential.”
My boys – all three of them – got a real kick out of that. “Potential. Really, Mom? Trees? Potential?” They just weren’t seeing it. Can you believe they could see this…
and not see the potential??
We made the move in August 2010, and every single day since then, I drive up our driveway and count my blessings. Never in my wildest dreams…
But here’s the funny thing. All this “potential” did not come without a price, and I’m not talking dollars here. Seriously, y’all, no one told me that live oaks shed their leaves. I thought live oaks meant live oaks – year round with all the same leaves. Imagine my surpise.
Trust me when I say the leaves haven’t just won the battle; they’re winning the war. I’ve raked and raked and raked and raked. And, did you know they lose their leaves at least twice a year??
And then there’s the constant limbs to pick up.
And the flower beds to clean out. And the porches to blow off…constantly!
And, while I think I could manage all the leaves, here’s the one thing that has driven me close to insanity.
Sprouts! Sprouts! Under every single tree. When we moved in, we didn’t have flower beds. We had sprout beds! Shortly after we moved in I decided to tackle those sprout beds, and I pulled up every stinkin’ one of those sprouts. Problem solved.
Well, not exactly, because some of them didn’t come up so easy. I managed to strip the leaves off the sprouts, which made the beds look a little better, but bottom line, the sprouts are still there. And, they multiply like rabbits.
With spring full on, I’ve been on sprout duty overtime. And, all this time on my knees pulling those little suckers out has given me plenty of time for thinking.
These trees are a powerful reminder about our faith…
We will only grow and flourish if our roots sink deep in Christ.
Shedding allows us to put on new growth.
It is our job to sprout.
And, like the sprouts, we must persevere.
Most importantly, just like I see the potential in the trees on our place, God sees the potential in each of us and He’s planted us exactly where we need to be. Isaiah 61:3b NLT reminds us, “In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory.
Let’s use our potential to shine the spotlight on just how good our God is. Let’s be determined to grow for His glory!
Speaking of potential…what do you think about this?
Look closer. Now you can see it?
Yep. This tree has the potential to be an amazing tree house for the first grandchild Brad and I will have one day. Always dreaming…