The Oak Trees

2 Cor 3:6 He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

I noticed some oak trees out by my home. Dead brown leaves still cling to the branches. Its amazing to me that they have not fallen off. The wind hasn't blown them off, the frost and snow haven't either. But something amazing will be happening over the next several weeks.

New green growth will force the old leaves off. We can learn something from the oak tree.

Maybe you are fighting a bad habit now or an addiction. You get frustrated with your self because it seems the harder you try the worse the habit becomes or you think about it more. You beat yourself up and tell yourself you will try harder again tomorrow.  What is happening is that you are trying to get rid of an old dead part of your life with the law. The above verse says the "letter kills" that is the law beats us and frustrates us. Its like the snow and wind trying to get those old dead leaves off the oak.

What you need in your life is the Good News that Jesus is the One who begins a good work in you and completes it! (Philippians 1:6) Its knowing His love for you (which is like the sun and the warmth and the new leaves) that helps old sinful habits die and new Godly habits form.

And when the old habit rears its ugly head again, return to the cross and see the blood flowing from the Savior that says you are forgiven and set free. His Spirit gives us life!

I look forward to watching the oak trees transform after a long winter.

In Christ,
Pastor John