Faithful Paradox

I love when God gives us real life pictures of how he often interacts with his children, training us in dependence and resilience. While there is not always a one-to-one correlation in every aspect, there are things we can glean from nature that remind us that we have a good Father, at work in our lives, even in the midst of seasons of drought or storms.

I live in Colorado, where it is not uncommon to experience long seasons of drought. There can also be winds in the spring that are so fierce they blow with the same force of a hurricane. Trees in my state often face extreme testing due to the lack of consistent moisture and winds strong enough to uproot established timbers.

When a tree is first planted, regular watering keeps the top layer of soil continually moist, causing the roots to seek moisture near the surface. Frequent watering makes for easy growth but creates a weak root system, leaving the tree vulnerable in times of testing. When the droughts and winds inevitably come, a tree which is not deeply rooted will wither or become easily uprooted.

I recently read about a practice called “drought training” in which arborists intentionally withhold water from young trees. This practice trains the roots to grow deep, seeking the life-giving water far beneath the surface. While the tree experiences stress in this process, when done properly, it causes the roots to become deeply ingrained, building long term resilience and the ability to withstand the inevitable drought and winds that are sure to come.

In addition to the roots going deeper, the fruit produced in years of drought training is often lower in quantity but better in quality. The fruit is smaller in size and there is less of it, but it is often some of the sweetest the tree will ever produce.

As I read about drought training I thought, isn’t that just like God? Doesn’t he train his children in just the same way?

When faith is new, we are frequently watered. Our roots begin to grow, although they lack depth. The ease of faith and the excitement of new life make belief seem fresh and effortless.

Then, in the skillful hands of the Master Arborist, we are planted into seasons of drought. While the drought is difficult and painful at times, the Master Arborist knows the training is necessary in order for our roots to grow deeper. We must face adversity and struggle, even suffering at times, in order to become firmly planted with roots that will hold in the fiercer storms that are yet to come.

We are tested and tried, intentionally planted into seasons of scarcity and pain, yet like the trees seen in nature, the spiritual fruit produced in these seasons can be some of the sweetest. We begin to understand that it is because of hardship that roots grow deep and fruit is more sweet. We can trust the Master Arborist knows just what we need. He knows the stress we can and must endure. He knows what is on the horizon and drought trains his children in order that we remain, “rooted and built up in him and established in the faith” (Colossians 2:7).

Drought training is painful. It can be exhausting. There are times we wonder if our roots will hold; if the Master Arborist can truly be trusted. Yet just as the training and testing is sure to come, so will “he come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water” (Hosea 6:3). There will come a season in which the roots are firmly established. They do not have to work quite so hard, despite the storms that still come. Plentiful fruit is grown more easily. These times of drought training are difficult yet we can be confident that training at the hands of the Master Arborist ensures “the roots of the righteous will never be moved” (Proverbs 12:3).