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| Rows of year old tree saplings before the snow |
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| Frozen sap fro woodpecker holes |
I head to the front yard, take some pictures to send to my dear friend and arborist Chip for his thoughts on the trees' new homes, and then I set to work. The ivy- spreading their tendrils in all directions- a network of roots, vines, and leaves- climbing up trees, intertwining vines strangling trees. The roots serve their purpose when contained- keep the ground from eroding with the rain- but when left alone, untamed, unrestrained, they have the very real potential to sap the life from the larger rooted trees, and cover and take down buildings. Something so small initially, when fed and nurtured and not cut back, grows in strength and size and gets to work slowly destroying.
So to work I went with the saw and clippers, beginning to free the trees. It was tough work freeing the long-rooted vines from the trunks of the trees- resorting to sawing the vines from their bases and carefully sawing the roots away from the bark without causing damage. It's a process that takes time so as to not break the vines prematurely nor to cut the trees too deeply.
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| Thick vines well-rooted |
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| The scars left after the vines were removed |
Isn't that just how our Heavenly Father handles us as He removes the unwanted strangling vines from our lives? The webs we've spun that distort our view and entangle us. The secret sin, that when left hidden and secret, eventually over time grows and traps us and weights us down- no longer serving us, but rather mastering us. The things we should have stopped doing, or perhaps started to do long ago, but for neglect or fear or other reasons, we never took that next step. He gingerly, yet sometimes with force, taking care not to chop us down at the roots, removes the dead and strangling past and sins from our lives and gives us the opportunity to stretch towards the Son. Without the weight of past mistakes and sins, we are able to grow freely. The scars may remain, and some remnants of vines may still cling, but they are a reminder of the obstacles overcome and how far God has brought us. And in time, those wounds will heal, but His pruning was necessary for survival and true, un-smothered growth. Will you trust Jesus to take your messes and tangled webs and vines and cut and prune and clean out your heart so you can move forward in life and thrive? I invite you to take that step today if you haven't already. You'll be happy you did. :)
Seeing with eyes of wonderment, Krista
