Wind, Roots and Stress Wood

"these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy.  And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away." - Mark 4:16-17

There is a lot of talk about sending people to Mars these days.  NASA has a plan, Richard Branson has a plan, Elon Musk has a plan, even Amazon owner Jeff Bezos has a plan.  One aspect of something like this is 'contingency planning', in other words, what if something goes wrong.  For instance, what will we do if an astronaut is inadvertently left on Mars?  Intriguing question, enough so that someone made a movie about it.  No spoilers here, but this guy wakes up to find he's been left on Mars by his crew and spends the next year or so trying to survive while NASA tries to save him.

Interestingly, this kind of problem has been worked on for decades now.  In 1985 Space Biosphere Ventures began construction on  Biosphere 2 [Earth is Biosphere 1].  No expense was spared, meticulous research was done.  The perfect atmosphere, the perfect species of trees, food crops, insects and animals were identified.  They designed this artificial world [built in Oracle, Arizona] to mimic ideal conditions for life.  September 26, 1991, eight 'crew' entered the Biosphere to live in this completely man made world for two years.  And life worked.  The corral reproduced in the small ocean, they grew rice, wheat, sweet potatoes, cowpea beans and trees.  Many things worked exactly as planned, although many didn't [all pollinating insects died, they were over-run by cockroaches and ants, oxygen levels had to be externally supplemented, etc.]  They learned a lot of things, but maybe the weirdest of all were the trees.  They grew extremely well in the beginning, but at a certain point, they would just fall over.  No one knew why.  Eventually, they discovered one thing [of the many] they had not accounted for in the biosphere was wind.  Seemingly trees need wind to develop strong roots and 'stress wood' [also called reaction wood].  This stress wood gives trees the ability to stand up against natural stresses like gravity, storms, etc. and evidently, it develops in reaction to wind.

Now, I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this.  I was reminded recently that as high as 75% of young people who grow up in Christian homes abandon their faith when they get to college.  Like the trees, they grow, but then collapse.  As a high school student in a Christian school, you've likely spent most of your life in a spiritual biosphere.  People [parents, grandparents, pastors, etc.] teach you about Jesus.  They are kind, tenderhearted and forgiving.  They discipline and admonish you, but you face very little that challenges your faith, very little that could be considered contrary 'wind'.  That's great in that you can grow unhindered, tall and gracious in your walk with God, but then, you go to college, or get a job in a secular workplace and BAM, stress hits.  People are not kind, not forgiving, immoral, unbelieving, antagonistic toward Christianity.  You find out that you, too, are not always kind, forgiving, or moral, and you begin to doubt.

So, what to do?  Should we attack one another's faith?  Refuse to go to college or get jobs anywhere but Chick-fil-a or Hobby Lobby?  I've got a couple of suggestions.

First, talk to people about your faith.  When you do, you will run

into resistance, even when it's in a "Private Christian School".  Don't be afraid to engage others about Jesus.  Will someone ask you questions you can't answer?  You bet.  Will you fall on your face, embarrass yourself, look like a fool?  Probably, I know I have.  Will you walk away, knowing you 'blew it' only to later realize "I should've said..."?  Absolutely.  Do it now, while you've got a place you can get back into [home, church, etc.] where the storm isn't raging.

Second, build on a solid foundation.  Jesus said the wise man builds on a rock, the fool on

the sand. [Matthew 7:24-27].  So what is a foundation?  Apologetics? no.  Theology? no.  Jesus said it was "hearing these sayings of mine and doing them".  BE what you proclaim.  If you think people they should read/study the Bible, then read & study the Bible.  If you believe people should refuse to "look on a woman to lust after her", then refuse to look on a woman to lust after her.  It almost seems too simple to say, but DO WHAT JESUS TOLD YOU TO DO.  Jesus was clear, storms will come, but if you are doing what Jesus said, you will be standing on a rock and you will survive.

Third, take a lesson from the mighty Redwood Trees.  Now, it makes sense to me that the taller the tree, the deeper the roots would need to be for it to stand in a storm, but actually, unlike a Pecan tree, a Redwood tree does not have a tap root [that is a central root that goes very deep into the soil], In fact, most of its roots are only 5-6 feet deep which doesn't seem like much when your talking about a tree over 300 feet tall.  This is odd, because Redwood trees are the tallest trees on earth.  Their secret is that these roots are loooooong.  They can be as long as 100 feet, and their great

strength comes from the fact that these long roots intertwine with roots from other redwoods, even fusing at times.  That gives them great strength and stability as they are, in effect, all holding each other up.  We are the same way.  A strong foundation is critical, but it is not sufficient.  You must remain connected to fellow Christians, people with like faith, people who will hold you up when the storm comes, and you can't do that by quitting [or slacking on] church while you're in college, by taking a job that makes it impossible for you to engage in daily life with fellow Christians, by filling your social calendar with the faithless.  David warned of this:

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. - Psalm 1:1-2

So are you like the rocky land in the parable, who grew well initially, when conditions were good, but "When tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away"  or do you plan to stand strong when you face adversity?  What are you doing to prepare for the storm?  Prepare to have root in yourself by these three things: 1) expose yourself to some wind, 2) do what Jesus tells you to do, and 3) build close relationships with people who can/will help & mentor you through the storms you will inevitably face.

What I learned from David Blaine

I don't know if you are familiar with David Blaine or not, he is a magician, seems to be a pretty weird dude in some ways. Not just normal sleight of hand magic, but Houdini type showmanship. He does stuff like:

• spent a week buried in a plexiglass coffin [no food, just water] under a clear tank full of water so people could look down and see him
• stood on a 100 ft. tall, 22 inch diameter tower for 36 hours,
• spent 63 hours encased in a transparent block of ice

Anyway, I watched a documentary on him and one of his stunts was to live in a glass box, suspended by a crane next to the Thames River in London, fasting, for 44 days. In the interview, he talks about doing absolutely nothing for 44 days, not even eating. He said that [paraphrased] your values change, what you value changes, your priorities are re-arranged. That wasn't too surprising, however, what he said next I found very thought provoking. He said that as soon as he was out of that box, his values and priorities began to revert to what they had been before, and now, he finds it very difficult to even remember what his thoughts were during that time, so much so that he is thankful he wrote them down.

Anyway, I thought that was interesting, and wanted to share it with you. I think sometimes we [I] get this unrealistic fantasy of what it is like to live in that 'other dimension'. To make the jump to never-never land, where I'm all spiritual all the time, my priorities are right all the time...but it just hasn't happened yet. Oh, there have been times, times of acute personal failure, or intense times of prayer and fasting where I see more as I am seen, but those times just don't seem to last very long for me.

Probably the most consistent time I have like that is weekly communion, where I spend a few minutes in honest, no-holds-barred self-examination in the light of the sacrifice of Christ. [Sidenote: If you only commune at Easter, Christmas, or maybe quarterly, you are missing such a powerful time of weekly connection with Christ...I know the argument, but arguments aside, no it doesn't get 'old' or 'routine' to me any more than it gets old to swap sincere I love you's with my wife...but I digress...]


To me it is similar to bouncing on a trampoline and seeing into a neighbor's yard each time I bounce up, but then having the view blocked by the privacy fence each time I come down. It looks like the people there are always having fun, in a beautiful yard...why can't we be like that, no weeds, no arguments, no selfish passive - aggressive comments, no stress.  Unfortunately, I don't live at the apex of the bounce, I live on the ground.  The ground where I see the weeds, the tools that weren't put up, the playhouse that needs the door repaired, the limbs that were trimmed but somehow haven't made it into the trailer, the bricks left over from the garden project...ad infinitum.

It would be nice to live at the apex of the bounce, but reality isn't like that.  That is only a temporary, even momentary, transient state.  In fact, it might even be viewed as an imaginary state.  Not that the bounce doesn't happen, and not that what we see isn't real, but that everything we imagine about the bounce view isn't accurate.

I really try, sometimes more than others, but most of the time, I really do try to live on that higher plane.  I guess I like trampolines more than some, but try as I might, it is just that for me, a spiritual trampoline.  I see me as I might be, as I could be, as I aspire to be, and during those times it's almost like I have a new set of eyes, a new light shines on old things. But then, just like David Blaine leaving the box, I land back down here were I live and those glimpses of something greater begin to fade.

If there was ever anyone whom I believe to have lived on that ethereal plane it was the Apostle Paul. And do you know what he said about this subject? Listen up...

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. - Phil.3:12-14

He was not discouraged by those moments and their fade, he understood that those glimpses were what we are living to attain.  Paul always was "reaching forward to those things which are ahead", and how did he say he did that?

But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. - 1 Cor.9:27

Paul was so committed/convinced that he once said "Woe unto me if I preach not the gospel".  Interestingly, when Paul gave his testimony, what he always told was about the time he met Christ.  He didn't spend a lot of time talking about his own life, not that he never mentioned it (See Romans 7 where he talks in detail about the same thing I speak of in this post), however, when he told his testimony to unbelievers, it was all about Jesus, when they met, what Christ told him, why he was given mercy.  What do you talk to unbelievers about?  Do you ever share your testimony?  It's really powerful you know...and just as it's powerful for people to hear how you met and chose to follow Christ, it's helpful to fellow Christians for you not to pretend you get it right all the time, that you never doubt, that you never slack, but that you always get back up and head toward finish line.

So what about you?  Are you "pressing on the upward way"?