We’d had these stately old trees trimmed last fall, pruned hard in preparation for the predicted El Nino rains that never arrived. They’d all initially shown signs of life, as small branches began to re-grow and leaves began to sprout. But as our drought continued through winter, spring and early summer that new growth slowed to a stop; what had already grown began to turn brown and die. It was in the heat of mid-summer when I saw that two of these trees that had provided shade from the heat and protection for birds and wildlife, were totally dead. And I realized that they had become unsafe and would have to be removed. Oh, how I grieved for these beautiful treasures, these dear “old friends” which had helped define our garden as lush and green; able to be seen from blocks away.

I was so grateful for the one eucalyptus that was still alive, bushy leaves filling each bare limb and providing shade from the searing summer sun. But as summer wore on, that eucalyptus began showing evidence that lerps were eating its leaves. I feared that without adequate rainfall it, too, would soon succumb, as had the others. It was in great distress, yet I held out hope that it would recover and wouldn’t need to be removed.

Keith did not and had other plans.

He made a financial decision: Rather than pay to have tree trimmers come out to remove the dead trees and then pay them to come again and remove the distressed tree when it died, he chose to have all three trees removed at the same time.

And so, at the end of October all three of them were removed…

…And I wondered what the underlying cause of their death really was…Drought? Was the pruning last year too severe? Had the salvias and sages growing around the base of the trees sucked whatever nutrients they’d needed from the ground in which they grew, even though these were mature, established trees?

And as I wondered and pondered, I realized that the timing of the demise of these “old friends” came at the same time that I was suffering burnout from serving in leadership at my church. Could the Lord have a lesson for me in this? Might He be trying to reveal to me the underlying cause of what had happened in my heart, mind and emotions that led me to say, “I can’t do this anymore!”

I’m sure you can already tell that He did…and that I will be sharing it with you.

But for today, let me encourage you to seek the Lord and His will in each and every area of your life. Do not withhold anything from Him. Ask Him to examine your heart and your mind and show you clearly what things He wants you to offer to His direction and care. Surrender those things to Him and don’t be afraid. Then rest…and trust His loving, caring heart for you. He has so much more in store for you than you could possibly imagine.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

Thank You, Lord, for the ways that You are guiding us on this journey through life. Please help us to seek Your will in all we do. I’m so grateful that we can trust You for everything we need for this life and the next!  Amen