I love trees. Their cool shade, their majestic height, the strength of their branches. Their beauty rests my eyes and calms my soul. I have even been known to hug them on occasion, enjoying a sense of fellowship with creation.

As a someone with a science background, I love to contemplate the miracle of trees. That you take a tiny seed, and give it sunshine and water and air and time and it produces this massive tree, and often fruit as well. And basically, all the mass of a tree comes from the carbon dioxide in the air. It seems so hard to believe that a tree is made of air! And not only that, but in the process of taking the carbon out of the air it produces the oxygen that we need to live. If you’ve never thought about it before, watch this TED talk What are trees made of? | TED-Ed.

God uses trees to describe us right through the Bible. For example, Psalm 1:1-3;

Blessed is the one
    who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
    or sit in the company of mockers,
 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and who meditates on his law day and night.
 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
    whatever they do prospers.

And Psalm 52:8;

But I am like an olive tree
    flourishing in the house of God;
I trust in God’s unfailing love
    for ever and ever.

Jeremiah17:7-8

 But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,
    whose confidence is in him.
They will be like a tree planted by the water
    that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
    its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
    and never fails to bear fruit.

A tree needs to have its roots planted in the soil, drinking up the water from the ground, and its branches outstretched to the sky, to absorb the sunlight and air that it needs to grow. From this it produces not just wood and leaves, but also large amounts of oxygen and often fruit, not for itself, but for the world around it. As the tree grows, it blesses the world around it in so many ways. It provides shelter to birds and animals, wood that is used in so many ways, oxygen so that animal life can flourish, and its roots stabilise the soil. To me this is such a beautiful image of the Christian life. We plant our roots deep into God, to receive the beautiful refreshing water of the Holy Spirit (John 4:14). We raise our arms up to heaven, to receive light and air (also both analogies for Holy Spirit). And these blessings don’t just bless us, they bless those around us. As we receive from God, the world around us is improved. Us receiving from God is not selfish – we must do it so that we can grow properly and provide what the world around us needs.

Hi, I'm Chris!

I'm an Australian Christian author, blogger and speaker who has published one book - Diamonds from the King - which is a book of stories from my life of ways that God has worked to bring precious diamonds from suffering, disappointment and confusion.

I'm a mum, granny and wife and I love spending time with my grown kids and my four and counting grandkids, but my greatest passion is to get to know God better, and to share his wonder with the world.