Saturday, February 23, 2019

All Alone?

My desk is upstairs by a double window overlooking the woods. 
Many days as I gaze out the window-----------I see lessons emerge
-----life lessons

Today's lesson has appeared most every winter for years. It shows up in the form of
 
a solitary leaf hanging staunchly onto the end of a tiny branch of a huge oak tree. 





All the other leaves had long fallen to the ground_____
but not this leaf. 
The wind blows.
The rain beats down. 
Yet, it remains----------All alone. 




Ever felt that way? All alone? I have! 
Like I am the only one----beaten down, rained on--------------All alone. 

This is exactly how one of God's prophets, Elisha felt. 
In I Kings 19:14, Elisha tells God "I am the only one left". All alone. 

But he wasn't. God tells Elisha in verse 18, "Yet I have reserved 7,000 in Israel". 7,000!!!!
Clearly Elisha is not all alone. It is his perception. 

As I gaze past my one little leaf to other trees nearby, I notice one with 2 leaves still attached---no! it's 3 leaves! And still further is a small tree with most of its leaves still connected to its branches. My little leaf really isn't all alone. 





These visual reminders of God's truth from God's world cause me to realize-------
just like my little leaf--------I am never all alone. 

My little leaf has the branch and really the whole tree! Some seasons of life are like that it seems. Just me and Jesus. But in other seasons of life, it's me and a few friends clinging to the branch (Jesus) together.  

Reality is---as God's child----I have the whole Christian community (the tree with all those leaves clinging)  "with me". I just need to look around......and see all God has given me!