Treehouse! Why the name?
Perhaps this is fuel for a conversation as you decorate your Christmas tree.
There are three types of people in your life cycle, Leafs, Branches and Roots/Trunks.
• The Leaf people are seasonal; they will be there for a little while then gone. Enjoy them and the beauty they provide but accept they will transition and not remain attached.
• The branch people are more stable; they will be around for several seasons and grow along with you. However, when the pressure really mounts upon you, they can break away and that process creates a need for healing. Again, cherish the branches; hope they will always remain; treat them with kindness but retain your own spiritual core as you grow.
• The Trunk/Root people. These are the most important. These are the relationships that will stand with you forever in your lifecycle. These are the steadfast. These are the source of nutrition for your life of growth. These are the people who strengthen your purpose, bond forever and will never relent. In the world of natural creation, God is present here.
In the natural world any natural element that does not give more than it takes will not survive. God created everything this way for a purpose.
If a plant takes more nutrition from the soil than it provides, it will die. Natural growth becomes a system of giving more than taking. Abundant harvests are contingent upon fertilization. Relationships are built the same way. If a person takes more than they give, eventually the relationship will die; eventually the giver cannot survive without reciprocal nutrition. This is the natural law of our Creator.
A life of abundance is only possible when you give, when you choose to fertilize others. If you spend more time taking than giving, you die (on the inside first).
The man who says, “I can’t” and the man who says, “I can”, are both correct. The difference is what they put in their mind, and then ultimately manifest.
When you pray thankfulness for both the abundance and the challenges in your life, He hears you.
Be strong!
♦ When you pray for courage, God does not make you courageous. God does not zap you with a feeling of instant invincibility. Instead, He creates the opportunity for you to manifest and show the courage that exists within yourself. When the opportunity is presented, be courageous.
♦ When you pray for wisdom, God does not make you wise. God does not zap you with new mental synapses that generate different thought sequences. Instead, He creates the opportunity for you to manifest the wisdom that exists within yourself. When the opportunity is presented, be wise.
♦ When you pray for patience, God does not make you patient. God does not zap you with a feeling of peace, stability, assurance and calmness. Instead, He creates the opportunity for you to manifest and express patience. When you are challenged by the opportunity, the choice to be patient and calm is yours.
♦ When you pray to be a better person in the life of others, God does not make you a better friend, colleague, spouse, father, counsellor. God does not zap you with the respect of your peers, the love of your family or friends. Instead, He creates the opportunity for you to express your best self, to build up, cherish, help and give to those you care about. When presented with the opportunity, be your best self -GIVE- the rest will follow.
Live your very best life by being your very best self.
You deserve it!
Love to all.
From the trunk of the Treehouse,
~ Sundance
https://fuelforpilgrims.wordpress.com/2018/10/31/the-power-of-bare-trees/
This reminded me, a good thing, of praying the Shema. Duet. 6:4 Shema Yisrael, Adoni Eluhalu Adoni echad, hear O Israel the Lord thy God, is one.
This prayer is said with hands raised, palms up, doing so plants your roots, (your hands,) in heaven. Col. 3:2 set your affections on the things above, not on things of the earth. Heb 12:12-13 Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; 13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.
Everything here is temporary, heaven is eternal. Planting our roots in heaven allows the rivers of living waters to flow through us and to others.
Like a tree planted by the waters. I shall not be moved.
Beautiful!
Great analogy.
Psalm 1 NKJV
The Way of the Righteous and the End of the Ungodly
1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
4 The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
Thank you for this needed wisdom. I have parked myself in Psalm and Proverbs for the last two months and this is a pleasant addition to my search for soundness, action, looking for wisdom regarding decision to be made and the search for knowledge, and good judgment.
May the Lord Bless you and your family this Christmas Season.
I join you in your prayer. Amen. Blessings.
Oh, Sundance, thank you for the explanation of the leaves, the branches, the trunk/roots of this Treehouse. I have had a mad love for trees ever since I was a child, climbing, swinging from and sitting under them — something so comforting there like a big mama.
My own Mama told me that when she young, she lived in Florida (near Coral Gables). She and a girlfriend found an amazing tree they would sit in and dream and sing. It had wide limbs, low to the ground (I often wondered if it was a Live Oak tree, those ancient beauties are majestic!) She had a name for that particular tree, “Nature Divine.” She’s been gone since 2009 now, but when I see an amazing tree I think of my Mom (mama) and say to myself, “Ah, there’s Nature Divine.”
Thank you, Sundance, for your wisdom and the beauty of your mind and words. I am happy to be a branch and a loyal root-in-training. God bless.
Trees are such uniquely special people! 🌲🎋🌳
I loved my favorite climbing tree in South Florida, it grew with me,, I said farewell to it as a young mom, it’s no longer there, but it reminds me to grow, be steadfast, and vibrantly alive
Thank you Sundance very good principles to live by give more than to receive, and always give thanks to the Lord and your family and friends and we will live a good life. We faced many challenges and obstacles, but with God and family and good friends, we will overcome.
Beautiful. Manifestation is a process of Thought, Word, and Deed. Asking God for something will always bring the opportunity to manifest it from within yourself. “Be careful what you ask for!” How do we manifest patience? By being presented with an opportunity to externalize the patience that exists within ourselves to bear on what could very well be a very challenging situation!
“Plant a tree for your tomorrow
It’s your tree that clears the air
Plant a tree, trees for America
Plant a tree today for all the world to share” —
John Denver
I’ve enjoyed sitting back and observing. No more.
Exactly what it takes. Congrats.
Thank you so much for this beautiful missive! Appropriate and timely.
The Treehouse is my favorite place to hang out!
God Bless you all, and thank you most especially Sundance!
Bless you Sundance!
Nothing could be better than this inspirational post.
Merry Christmas Treepers!
In your opening page you opined what I find most important.
“In the world of natural creation, God is present here.”
May we never forget that God is with us always, so long as we can open our hearts and mind and SEE.
Bless you Brother.
Every treehouse needs a ladder.
I read this to my 20 year old daughter. She is suffering from the loss of a friendship. This came at the perfect time for us.
Beautiful, Sundance, as ever.
A fabulous analogy at a great time of the year.. Thank you .. Richard Castagner, author
Thank you!
Merry Christmas.
Right On Sundance!!
Sundance, love & appreciate all that you do.💕
Love this life & spiritual affirming tree. 🌲
God bless, and have a joyful Christmas season! 🙏💝
While it is absolutely essential to thank God when he answers our prayers, it is just as important to thank God when things are going smoothly.
And also when there appears to be roadblocks and difficulties. Thanking God for the opportunity to grow and learn something new.
Great analogy, Sundance.
Thank and Bless You!
Trees
https://poets.org/themes/custom/stanza/assets/images/optimized/social/facebook.svg https://poets.org/themes/custom/stanza/assets/images/optimized/social/twitter.svg https://poets.org/themes/custom/stanza/assets/images/optimized/social/tumblr.svg https://poets.org/themes/custom/stanza/assets/images/optimized/social/print.svg
Joyce Kilmer 1886 –
1918
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.
This poem is in the public domain.
Joyce Kilmer was born on December 6, 1886, in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The author of Main Street and Other Poems (George H. Doran Company, 1917), he was killed while fighting in World War I.
About Joyce Kilmer
Thank you, Linda K!
My grandfather often recited this poem!
Okay, you jogged a memory that I haven’t thought of in years! Seventh grade in Junior High, my first experience of changing classrooms was a fantastic thought. Every hour I got to get outta my desk and walk to the next class. I had a great English teacher that taught Spanish&Latin, but also did Literature. Boy howdy, I loved to read everything I could get my hands on, no matter the subject of the material.
I walked into the Literature class so excited at the thought I was going to excel and just glide through this experience. But…my first assignment was to memorize and recite this poem in front of the whole class. Yikes! I did make it through with a bit of a struggle.
Still to this day, my memory can recite every word in the poem Trees perfectly. Thanks so very much for the reminder 😛
I had to memorize this in grade school, can’t remember which grade. Thanks for refreshing my memory.
The Camus quote reminds me of the famous Austrian Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl
Thank you Sundance. I am sharing this with everyone. Thank you, again. Blessings.
This is one of the best reminders to not get Discouraged with the world, thank you, SD. Is there a way to link this to the top of the page, or whatever the eye tee description would be, or would that be too onerous for the website traffic?
Take your Christmas Tree and shove it, red balls and all! Call me an environmentalist at least, a realist at best. My church leader refuses to tell kids Santa is false. I don’t know where I fall in the spectrum, but go with God, and I do mean Jesus Christ!
Tucker just did his best interview.
No one is talking about a Christmas tree here. The tree is an anology of the Treehouse which we all gather in. Also, the tree as a protective covering from nature.
It is unfortunate that a pastor would allow a make believe construct of a fairytale become equal footing with God. I told my child that santa claus came from a northern European tradition during Christmas to give to the poor, they called that man St Nicholas as He was the one who he started it. I did not want my child to ever think that God was a make believe construct. I don’t know if I was correct in my explanation. We honoured Christmas as celebrating Jesus’ birth.
As I reflect on the past few years, I find myself strangely grateful for the plandemic, especially the lockdowns. I worked in a big downtown building and I was under this delusion that I needed my work friends and the hundreds of people I encountered and chit-chatted with every day. Does our society, social media, etc. drive us to believe that 1000s of friends is the goal of life. The plandemic helped me discover I don’t need a network of friendships a mile wide and an inch deep; I don’t have that much bandwidth. I learned that I need a small network of friendship a few feet wide and a mile deep (sorry Dale Carnegie). I find myself drawn to CTH where I can communicate with and learn through and with people who share common bonds, in other words a shared culture.
Sundance, thank you. In particular the idea of leading your best life resonates with me. I frequently ponder what that means. God, Truth, Family, a few close friends, Fresh Air splitting wood, my dogs, food as close to it’s natural state as possible, a sense of humor, good books, poetry, silence to think, etc. define my best life.
The plandemic taught me I may be in the wider world, but i don’t need to be “of” it. Despite the crazy stupid of the world which only seems to grow more ludicrous every day I find each day an opportunity to wander the backwoods, clarify my values, and to enter, without fear, the ever growing challenges with an eye on becoming who God created me to be.
I’d love to hear from others what leading your best life means.
God’s Peace and Blessings to all.
All things come together for good for those who love the Lord. I can think of a multitude of ways the plandemic had positive results. For one thing, parents found out what schools were teaching their kids, a very dark secret that needed outing.
Adversity is the exercising of muscles that is painful but needs to happen in order to exact growth.
This is most excellent and replaces my outdated sand and rocks through a sifter screen analogy. The real friends are the rocks, and the sand is much like
the leaves, but, your analogy carries a much deeper meaning and like everything you so freely share, per your request, I’m stealing this 😉
God bless you SD and God the TreeHome!
When my son passed away at age 24 I thought I was going to lose my mind. My 75 yr old Mother moved 1,800 miles to be with me and help me cope. When my husband passed away 6 months ago, she was still here to help me. She is my trunk and my roots. I thank God daily that I still have her for I know many do not have that blessing. My two remaining children are growing to be part of that trunk. I pray for guidance to help them transition into adulthood.
I love your beautiful analogy and encouragement.
May God continue to Bless you and this wonderful Treehouse you have created.
Very sorry for your losses. Not sure I could cope.
As the saying goes: “The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now.”
Plant away. We need more treepers.
there is only 1 trunk, few branches and many leafs. just like the people in hour life!
While watching the 1999 A Christmas Carol (with the great-but-clueless Patrick Stewart), I was thinking over something that always bugged me with the tale. Marley’s explanation to Scrooge (lifted almost word-for-word from the original story, like much of the dialogue in Hallmark’s rendition) comes across as almost a screed against the rich, the wealthy, the “haves”. But tonight it clicked: he never once claimed wealth was the problem; its what we do with our wealth. Cratchit, who had nothing, was charitable. While Scrooge, who had it all, was not.
Charity is the key, and it is a choice. 1 Corinthians 13:2-3
As Christ gave Himself for his sheep, we should also give in love. This is not necessarily money, its our time, our efforts, and for those with spiritual eyes, it is whatever we know is right in the moment. Verse 13 from above:
This is what the Marxist can never understand: charity is selfless giving, and it is a choice. The government taking is not charity, nor can a law ever mimic what we ourselves ought to do. Thus, when they look at the good themes in A Christmas Carol, they can only see the “evils” of the rich and never comprehend the timeless story of redemption.
In every spiritual observation is the aspect of salvation, the definition. This is no different. amazingly all Gods attributes are like the tiniest increment used to create all creation. BOOM expanded is all things.
Salvation is not gifted to one religion it was a given to all before man created religion, so how does this fit? Prayer! Prayer is not a mystical thing and its not hard except to focus, to reach Gods wavelength and escape ours.
If in prayer all we do is benefit from what we all have anyway is that secular, Just need to recognize? The need for God in this equation is far more relevant than a trial or a test, we are not capable unless we can leave whatever is blocking this Godly attribute. It could mean damnation if we are all held accountable for what is in us. How can that be? God ordains and blesses, reading Gods word is a cleansing and produces wisdom. One thing leaves another is in its place. Asking is consenting to change. Trials are the proving of the intent, the perfecting. There is much involved in any request and movement in our lives a very detailed task that allows no separation but adherence to God.
I am a smilin, Sundance.
-Thank you💖
—————————
From A Tree Grows In Brooklyn:
“The one tree in Francie’s yard was neither a pine nor a hemlock. It had pointed leaves which grew along green switches which radiated from the bough and made a tree which looked like a lot of opened green umbrellas. Some people called it the Tree of Heaven.”
That was one of the best sermons I’ve read in quite some time.
Thank you.
This is profound and well said. I am glad I was drawn to you several years ago and continue to follow your writings!
I had 3 trees taken down in my front yard last month by a tree service, now they are just short stumps, but the roots are still there.
I have had to do the same thing with certain friends and family members also, the roots are still there, but I don’t associate with them anymore.
Thank you Sundance for this writing as a way to contemplate the humans in my life. Real leaves that do not contain tannic acid can be mulched as compost for the soil in the garden; branches can be pruned judiciously when they do not nourish the root and the trunk.
The pruning of the branches is the hardest part for me, but often (only speaking as an orchardist and gardener), pruning the suckers makes the tomato plant grow stronger and bear more fruit.
And pruning what is called the “dead wood” branches on a tree makes the whole tree, as well other branches, its trunk and roots become stronger.
We all need the right nutrients to grow and prosper.
No need to ask what a Faithful Treeper is
A Truly great peptalk! Much appreciated, Sundance! You truly give more than you take, and your roots are firmly established!
Some people are tumbleweeds, man. There’s no majesty in life for them.
I can not find the guidance on the password protected stories. I missed at least the last two. Where can I find the key? Thanks
The password is always, “wolverines.”
thanks
I’m close to being in my 9th decade. God is the root; Christ the branch; everybody else is a leaf…
Awesome!
A beautifully written piece. Thank you for that.
Loved this analogy!
I appreciate the explanation. The Conservative Treehouse isn’t just a funny random name, it has meaning in reference to the blog’s followers. Leaf people, branch people, and trunk people.
All of God’s creatures are born with the ability to recognize each other as beings which derive our actions from the same set of feelings. I believe that, in this way, God gives us the way to connect to what we are a part of. Our world is not a finished product, but all living things are part of the the process. We have to do our best if our lives are to have had any meaning. Thanks for this posting, Sundance.
Never quote Camus
Thank you, Sundance. Love you, and God Bless.