I'm sitting here at my computer wondering what on earth to say about this. There's a whole long story linked to this painting, and I'm not sure it's my story to tell. I suppose a general summary would be to say that this tree is permanently cemented in the minds of my friends as a turning point in their lives. The story involves an accident, a lot of tears, a great deal of heartache, and probably a significant amount of fear. IT ALSO INVOLVES GREAT HOPE. Our God, Who loves us and redeemed us, also loves to redeem the most broken parts of our lives.
That's the whole point of this painting. God takes what we might see as having no value (some people would have just cut the tree down!), and changes our hearts so that we can see hope. God's breath moves through our lives, moves through us, and we are transformed...and the circumstances of our lives are transformed as well.
A beautiful thought for a Sunday morning.
