Palm Trees

last night i went to Midtown Church which i LOVE, by the way. there is such an amazing group of people there. i feel encouraged and welcomed the moment i walk in the door! but last night was particularly special because Aaron Keyes spoke. i always love hearing from aaron because i know how much he fills himself with scripture and you get to see it all flow out of him when he speaks. anyway, he spoke last night on worship and took scripture from the Psalms because its full of people who have lifted up worship to God through the good times and the bad. well then he went into different ways that we outwardly worhip the Lord. he compared it to palm trees and willow trees. now ill start with the willow trees because the good stuff comes with the palm trees :) willow trees as you know are droopy. they actually grow downward and bend downward. they bow. in asian country's if you were to meet someone that was older than you or at a higher status than you you would bow before them to show your respect for them and acknowledge that you are lower than them. now with our worhip when you are humbled at the Lords greatness dont you naturally want to bow, get on your knees, or put your face to the floor cause there is nowhere lower to go?! its not a bad thing, its a beautiful thing! you are acknowledging that God is higher than you and so He receives the glory! now onto the palm tree which is my favorite. in Levitcus 23:40 it talks about raising palm branches and REJOICING before the Lord! Aaron hit on 5 facts about palm trees that so define the people who truly rejoice in the Lord and here they are:

1. unlike most trees, palm tree's roots go miles into the ground looking for a water source. but because these roots run so deep they remain rooted through ANY storm! notice how in hurricanes and tornadoes, the palms are practically bent over.....but they never break :) they are strong and after the storm they are actually stronger.

2. palm trees can never be cut down because they get their nutrients from "the heart" which is in its root in the ground! the heart is safe in the foundation. so you can hack and hack at a palm tree and cut it deep but it will always grow back. just like Christians, we may be cut down and attacked but we grow back because we were made to stand strong and tall and our heart is protected by our foundation.

3. the fruit from a palm tree can never be taken or eaten by any animal because they are held high, protected. aaron referenced a verse that talked about how when God protects us, He doesnt hide us from sight, He hides us out of reach. but he took this a little differently than i thought and referred to the fruit on the tree as the 'fruit of our loins'. if you train up your children in the way of the Lord then they will not turn from it (proverbs 22:6). we protect our children just like a palm tree. hold them close where its safe but if they decide to fall, we cant force them to stay.

4. a palm tree keeps growing. they keep growing higher and higher to the sky until they die. and i think this is a vital thing that we have to remember as christians, is to NEVER stop growing. there will always be more to learn and God doesnt have a cut off age for His plans for you, not until the day He finally takes you home!

5. and finally, the only way a palm tree can die is the cold. this is why palm trees are only in like florida and the desert, etc. but this is, i think, the most important to know and hold onto. you have to keep the fire burning inside. that fire is your passion to not only live BUT live to the fullest! if that fire freezes up the passion goes with it.

anyway, i hope i didnt butcher what he said but it was really neat to me and i believe the Lord will have you interpret what he wants you to hear, so im not too worried. i learn well with imagery so i hope you do as well :)

REJOICE!!!