Big Dead Oak.....

He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. Psalm 1:3

It is clearly a very old tree, towering above the two-story farm house which sits a good distance from the road. Its branches sprawl out from its main core, some as large as other trees around it. The oak tree is positioned just to the left of the house, from my perspective. However, it is dead....one massive, leaf barren, oddly beautiful, dead tree. I wonder what happened to it? As old as it is, why did it die now? The quick answer is, I have no idea. I am not a tree expert and I certainly don't have access to the property to find out. But, I did find out that oak trees do not die overnight- there is a process to its dying that can take from one to five years. It can be environmental or even an act of God (eg. lightening). The point is, it is always a process. Of course, this does remind me of our spiritual lives. As a member of the redeemed, our spiritual health ebbs and flows. While we may declare at one point in time that our spiritual lives are dead, this deadness is not instantaneous. It is a process. I wonder which direction my spiritual life is heading right now?....towards life or towards death? How about you?