Lessons of the Trees #3: Trust

There is a passage in the book of the prophet Jeremiah that once you’ve read or heard it, you never forget.  It has that kind of imagery.  It is an image of a tree that grows near enough to a river that its roots grow and stretch toward the life-giving waters, receiving all the sustenance it needs to weather any drought and bear fruit in any season.  Jeremiah personifies the tree – it “does not fear” and “it is not anxious.” 

The tree is a metaphor for those who trust God.  Like the tree, they are well-placed.  They need only “send out their roots” to reap the benefits of the waters, which flow unceasingly from the One who refreshes the soul.  Reaching out for those waters – it stretches us – it is uncomfortable.  We are tentative at first.  But when we begin to feel the cooling effects of the river, we are soothed and encouraged.  Our roots reach ever farther, deeper into the soil where there is always plenty of water in reserve, farther toward the river where waters flow freely.

This is the nature of trust.  It is a slow growth which roots us deeply in the one we depend on.  At first we are unsure, but when we discover that our reaching out never leaves us dry or parched, then, when the drought comes and the heat pelts us, we can stand tall and stoic, our roots soaking up the life-saving waters.  We discover that we not only weather hostile conditions – but that in the end we may even flourish. 

The Cross of Jesus was one of these well-placed trees.  Here trust played out between a Father and Son, between human and divine, between a dying thing and the Author of all life.  Faced with drought and ruin, roots reached deeply into fertile soil and drank abundantly from the river of God.  And in the fertile conditions of trust, the dead wood of the Cross again sprouted green leaves, and bore the first-fruits of eternal life!

Blessed are those who trust in the Lord,
   whose trust is the Lord.
They shall be like a tree planted by water,
   sending out its roots by the stream.
It shall not fear when heat comes,
   and its leaves shall stay green;
in the year of drought it is not anxious,
   and it does not cease to bear fruit (Jer. 17:7-8).

A Prayer for Women

The role of women in the Passion and Resurrection Narratives in the Gospels should get our attention and lead us to a better understanding of the importance of women in the life and ministry of Jesus as a whole. 

This prayer highlights the relationship between Jesus and the women in his life – those who followed him during his earthly ministry, and those who follow him now:

Lord Jesus Christ, your presence was powerful in the lives of women.  You were born of a woman, whom you honored and loved, and who treasured you in her heart (Lk. 2:7, 51).  You revealed yourself to women as the Messiah, the Resurrection, and the Life (Jn. 4:26; 11:25-27).  You were friends with women (Jn. 11:5).  You were welcomed into their homes (Lk. 10:38).  Women travelled with you (Lk. 8:1-3), listened to your words (Lk. 10:39), wept for you (Lk. 23:38), witnessed your death (Mk. 15:41) and proclaimed your Resurrection (Jn. 20:18). 

Lord Jesus, with compassion and power, over and over you healed women of faith and their loved ones (Mk. 5:34; Mt. 15:28).  You expelled demons from the depths of their souls (Mk. 16:9), healed them spiritually by the forgiveness of their sins (Lk. 7:48), and restored them physically, freeing them from the bondage of illness and pain (Lk. 13:16). 

Like the women of the Gospels, we befriend you, we welcome you into our homes, we walk with you, listen to you, weep with you, follow you to the Cross, and witness your empty tomb.  We too have experienced your healing touch and the restoring power of your forgiveness.  Heal us again, Lord, and strengthen us to proclaim with Mary Magdalene, “I have seen the Lord!” (Jn. 20:18).  Amen.

---

The Resurrection Narratives in the Four Gospels

It’s Easter Season – the perfect time of year to read and meditate on the Resurrection Narratives in the four Gospels.  Sometimes the accounts run together in our minds, and it's hard to remember which story comes from which Gospel.  Which evangelist tells of Jesus asking Peter if he loved him?  Which one tells of the Risen Christ breaking bread with his disciples?  Which one tells of Mary Magdalene weeping at the tomb? 

Click below for a handy guide to the Resurrection Narratives in the four Gospels. It will help you quickly identify where each story can be found.  You can also compare the stories and identify some interesting similarities among the different accounts (e.g., the Risen Christ eating fish and showing his wounds in both Luke and John).

Note that Mary Magdalene is the first to see the Risen Christ in all accounts except the Gospel of Luke, where she is still among the women who are first to discover the empty tomb.  That's quite an honor for one who was once possessed by seven demons (Lk. 8:2)!

The Resurrection Narratives are easy to find in each Gospel – just check out the last chapter of each of the Synoptic Gospels (Mt. 28, Mk. 16, and Lk. 24) and the last two chapters of the Gospel of John (Jn. 20-21). 

Guide to the Resurrection Narratives in the Four Gospels (PDF)

Jesus said to her, "Mary!"  She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (which means Teacher).  -- John 20:16

---

I Have Power to Lay It Down

Good Friday

No one takes [my life] from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again (Jn. 10:18).

Today, when you look upon your Savior on the cross – don’t feel guilty.  It isn’t enough.  Feel elated, feel loved, feel treasured and valuable.  No one takes my life, he said, I lay it down.  I lay it down because I love you, and I want to show you who I am; I will show you who you are; I am showing you who we are together.

Jesus is a victim, but a willing one.  The greatest love is this, he said, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends (Jn. 15:13).  Today, accept the friendship offered by the one on the Cross.  That is one thing that can make today very Good.

---

One Hour Retreat for Holy Week

Years ago in a course on the Synoptic Gospels, an assignment changed my life.  Fr. Frank Matera instructed us to read the Gospel of Mark – from beginning to end – in one sitting.  Before we began reading, we were to forget everything we thought we knew about Jesus – to set aside all of the deeply-engrained images, long-held presumptions and preconceived ideas we had accumulated over the course of our lives.  Reading Mark’s account, we were to meet Jesus for the first time – to encounter him with open minds in this fast-paced narrative – to be confronted by the radical life and urgent demands of this Jesus of Nazareth.  It was an assignment offered in an academic setting, but it had the potential to transform us at a far deeper level.

There is a general consensus among scholars that Mark’s Gospel was the first of the canonical Gospels to be written.  It is exciting to read a text so ancient and so raw, a text that was almost certainly used as the framework for the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.  I invite you to set aside one hour sometime this week, find a quiet place, and open your Bible to the Gospel of Mark (which is significantly shorter than the other Gospels).  Use your imagination and travel through the narrative with Jesus.  Listen to him, watch him, witness his death.  Be honest with yourself about what he is asking of you.  You are a disciple, and he is your Master.  You will never be the same!

Christ Healing a Leper, by Rembrandt

---