Floods In The Desert - pt2

Imagine yourself as a tree in one of these wadis. You're anchored in the rock in a bend. It hasn't rained in months. All you see in front of you is fine, white sand. When the wind blows hard enough, a few leaves fly away. It's dry. But today is different. Today there is a roar of water getting closer, and closer. Soon the torrent hits and you bend in its wrath. Despite the boulders washing through and the relentless strain, you hang on.

After a while, the torrent has become a slow, steady stream. Then it slows to a crawl. After a day or two, you notice your leaves are green. Another day passes and fruit has begun its growth on your limbs. Finally, the water is gone, and the desert wind dries the floor of the wadi, and there you stand - as before.

Only now, your leaves are green and the fruit is weighing on your limbs. The temperature a few feet above is 120 degrees and there is no sign of water, and yet you have fruit.

So what has it really cost you to bear fruit in your life? What kind of floods have you had to endure in order to be productive in your Christian walk? What kind of floods are you going through right now? God does have a plan. Although this flood is highly unpleasant, your roots will dig deeper into the rock.

Sometimes we meet people who have spent their lives in the floodplain. They are scarred up - beaten up - weathered... and they bear MUCH fruit. We see evidence of water.

Understand, simply by looking at a tree in the wadi, it is impossible to determine how deep its roots run. Outside of church, have you ever seen your pastor study his bible? Have you ever seen him on his face in prayer? If all you have seen is what has been visible at church, then you've only seen the top of the roots. You wont know how deep his roots run until the flood comes.