L Shaped trees

Have you ever seen a weirdly shaped tree where it's bent somewhere in middle of the trunk to form the tree in the shape of an "L" and asked yourself, how'd it get that way? We assume that trees should grow straight reaching towards the sky, right? Logically yes, but there's a story behind the bent trees. 150-200 years ago Native American's would purposefully bend the trees to create trail markers notifying travelers of things of where there was food and water near by or to mark warnings of rough country ahead. They were important for the navigation of early travelers. Someone having created for you a guidance system of where you were supposed to go yet keeping the knowledge organic and secret was necessary for survival. Trees shaped like this are mostly lost to age and disease however there are few that still remain and allow us to see history.

Think of your life's journey, I'm almost certain that you've had crooks which were purposely placed in your life haven't you? Challenges with jobs, marriages, children or anything that you believe strayed you from your life's trail. Do you think that these trials have been placed in your path that forced you to bend in a different direction for a good reason or do you think what you faced was unfair? As we start the new year we have high hopes for new beginnings or changes that will allow us to grow and become better people, better than we were the year before. Things we want to be different and now we have the chance for them to be changed. We as Christians believe that God will provide all needs but if we're being honest, somewhere tucked in the back of our minds we wish that we could have a trail marker. A guide book from Him for early navigation, we want to see the bent trees.

But we know full well that's not how our walk with the Lord works. We want easy flat groomed trails that lead us in predictable 90 degree angles. We don't want hills or valleys or swamps to waddle through, we want to come out clean on the other side with little to no effort. We're lucky though, we don't have clean trails but we've been entrusted with a travelers guide, the Bible. We have fellow Christians that will walk along side us, our community for safety in numbers. And of course and most important, we have a trail blazer, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who is constantly stepping before us, navigating us to food and water and giving us directions to stay away from danger. Our guidance system was well thought of before time existed and our community with whom we blaze the trails with was created by the One who created the guide book. Every time you think that something should be going straight but has wavered crookedly, think of it as a trail marker. Something along your story line that the Lord has gifted to you because He has gone before you and made a way, a way for us to grow dependent and rely on Him has been forged.

Let us step confidently into 2018 with our heads held high, our trail shoes on and our travel book worn from reading and researching. We have the necessary survival skills instilled in us but we must trust our trail blazer and let Him show us the way.

Luke 9:57