NEW LIFE REPLACES OLD

We have a small beech tree near our driveway that makes itself seen in winter, because it keeps a fair number of its leaves from last summer, throughout the winter months. They just refuse to drop off, in spite of the snow and winter winds. I believe this beech tree has something to teach us.

Most all deciduous trees drop their leaves in early fall, usually after the first real frosty night. This is due partly to the fact that they have served their useful role of providing energy to the tree from the sun all summer, and partly because the action of the frost breaking the bond between the leaf and the twig it has been attached to. The question is, why doesn’t this happen to every leaf on this beech tree? Why do some leaves hang on until spring?

I really don’t know the answers to these questions, but I do know what causes them to drop off eventually. When the days lengthen and the rays of the sun get warmer, the sap starts to flow up from the roots of that tree, and a miracle happens. New life starts to show as buds develop on these little twigs and new life forces these stubborn old leaves to drop off to make room for the new ones!

A very similar thing happens in our lives as Christians. Sometimes stubborn old habits just refuse to fall off, like those leaves on that beech tree. Paul speaks to this in (Gal 5:16-26), where he makes it clear that if we “walk in the Spirit, we will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh”. In other words, the flow of new life in the Spirit, will force these old habits to drop off! Just like the flow of sap up from the roots of that beech tree causes those leaves from last year to finally fall off!!

I trust this little illustration will help some of you get rid of some stubborn old habits from your former life that you picked up before you came to know Jesus. I expect to see that little beech tree in a short time, lose those stubborn old leaves, and be covered with new growth! And I expect to see the same thing happen in your lives!!----Sincerely in Him----Gramp