Oh, to be like a tree …

So I’m consistently returning to one of my favorite passages in the Bible. It’s in the very first chapter of Psalms. “They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.” — Psalm 1:3

The psalmist is describing what life looks like for someone who walks closely with the Lord. It’s such a vivid and beautiful illustration of the abundant life Jesus refers to in John 10:10. And it always makes me pause to imagine some other ways to describe a tree near the water.

Now you try it. Read verse 3 again, then close your eyes and let your mind take you to the river. What words, and images, capture your imagination? Here are some of mine:

• Vibrant

• Lush

• Fruitful

• Nourished

• Growing

• Rooted

• Satisfied 

• Abundant.

Yes, that’s what an abundant life, rooted in Christ, can look like. Though the world is constantly pleading with me to “do,” “be” and “become” to find my worth, this brief passage has given me a new desire for my future self. 

I want to be just like a tree. But only if I’m planted near the river. The one with the true Living Water.