Redwood trees never stand out alone. As far I can tell, there is no single tree at the heart and center of the forest. I can find special trees; those that have characteristics that make them stand out. Even the tallest, widest, one with a shop in it’s heart, another with the widest canopy, and the one with the road through it’s middle all belong to a larger community. Their roots intertwined for strength and nourishment. They see things beyond them to sustain and realize their purpose.
We are closer to the Redwoods than we care to realize or admit. We try to stand alone, not realizing that by doing this we are in poverty. We are all struggling to survive in this world; we start, journey, and end on equal footing. No one inherits anything richer than another. It is in our own efforts that the truth comes out. “The poverty of the indigent is their ruin.” (Proverbs 10.16)
What is it that nurtures our souls and gives us the strength (hope) to carry on? The answer is fundamentally the same, God.
God is what we all thirst for. We may not realize it at times, however the thirst is still there, and we are trying to find something, anything, to quench the longing within our hearts. When we behave like Redwoods, linking up with fellow seekers of God, something happens in the community that results. We are able to hold each other up, each is able to share their discovery of beauty and nurture with another, and the strength of the group buffers individuals from the troubling winds that are part of living on this world.
It is easy to forget the heart and center of it all. We find the pain of today confronting and propelling our deepest fears and doubts, and there is nowhere to turn. The answer has always rested in coming to God. Easy to say; we often find it difficult to consistently realize because we want to do it on our own. The answer lies with God; God alone.
