A Lesson from the Trees

Psalms 96:12 - "...then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice." 

The other day, I took a few lazy minutes to observe the trees. I watched and listened as their leaves rustled and danced, joyfully in the wind. While I could have thought of a million other things at that moment, the thought that crossed my mind was this: They are praising God and bringing Him pleasure, simply by standing there doing what they're meant to do...just being trees.

You know, when we were children, we dreamed big. Remember that routine question adults would ask, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" As if on cue, our creative, ambitious, little minds would shift into overdrive as we contemplated all the grand and glorious possibilities. A doctor. A firefighter. A lawyer. Even as a child, we knew not to settle for less than the best we could think up.

Although those childhood dreams might not have come to fruition, as adults we still dream. If we're a seamstress, we want to be the best around. If we're a realtor, we desire to be Realtor of the Year. No matter what we are, we're always striving to improve. We take classes, study, try to move up the corporate ladder, etc. (Just a note, there's nothing wrong with desiring to better ourselves if we remain humble and in God's will along the way.)

What about our service, in the Kingdom? If you're the church janitor, be the best one you can be. If you vacuum the sanctuary or mow the church yard, do it to the best of your ability. If you're a Sunday School teacher or lead a small group or Bible study, do it with all your might as unto the Lord. If you pick up people for church or feed the less fortunate or lead a youth group or if you're simply a greeter - bring God pleasure and praise from right where He's planted you. 

 "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; 

and before thou camest forth out of the womb

 I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee..."

Jeremiah 1:5 

 The point I want to make is this: We don't have to be "all that and a bag of chips" to BE something in the Kingdom of God. He had a certain plan for us from birth and gave us certain talents to fulfill our role. We don't necessarily have to preach a huge conference overseas and see thousands of people give their lives to Christ or be used in the areas of healing or prophecy. (There's a spot and room for everyone in the body!) We don't have to be in a specific "position" to bring Him pleasure. All we have to do is serve God to the best of our ability - RIGHT WHERE WE'RE AT. You see, we don't have to be something "bigger and better" to give God our best praise. Be what God designed you to be, do it with all your heart... this will bring pleasure and praise to your Creator. There's no better place or thing for us to BE. A lesson from the trees~