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.