As a child, I attended Rainbow Trail Lutheran Camp in southern Colorado every summer. One year I went on a small hike with the naturalist on staff. During the previous year, a forest fire had come perilously close to camp. She led us through the burn area. In the middle of that barren space of charred forest was a patch of tiny dancing green leaves. It stood out brightly against the blackened toothpicks of burned tree trunks. The new, toddler-sized trees were aspen. Aspens are so resilient, she said, because they are not solitary. Beneath the soil, aspens have massive, interconnected roots, making them among the world’s largest organisms.
I remember the naturalist told us that the church is like those aspens. We are all connected by our shared faith in Jesus, giving us strength and support even through hard times. Our shared roots provide hope when everything seems lost, and courage when we are afraid. Thanks be to God, our interrootedness gives us strength.
This message is excerpted from “Jesus and nature: Teachers of faith” by Sara Olson-Smith in the September/October 2022 Gather magazine.
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