Withered

I noticed a tree limb in my yard this week that is totally bare. Has been all summer, this is not a 'losing your leaves' kind of thing. This limb has hung on to the trunk all year, but never sprouted a single leaf. Not one acorn has been produced on this particular limb. In fact, it now has dried and withered so much, that it no longer even looks good hanging there.

What catches my attention about this limb is how it parallels Jesus' remarks in John 15 about vines and branches. That whole being connected thing is not optional ... it is vital and necessary. That limb appeared to be part of the tree, but in the end it's lack of involvement with the activity of the tree gave it away. Tree limbs with no leaves or fruit (or in this case, nuts) aren't tree limbs. They're firewood!

So it is with people who stay rooted to church seats, appearing to casual observers as if they are the church. Without some external evidence, it just isn't so! If you aren't providing shade or producing some nourishment, you better check your connection. The bark may still be on, but the sap just isn't getting through.

Raking leaves,

Harry