I was on a run on Saturday morning with my friend Jeff. Jeff went to Pakistan with me, is 61 years old, and is the one who challenged me with the $250.00 "live for the good of the world" challenge that I brought to Open Door.
As we ran in the mountains together, we came upon a lone oak tree in the middle of nowhere. We stopped. He asked, "Do you see that oak tree?"
"Yes." I said.
"I know that man who planted that over 20 years ago. Every single Saturday for a number of years, he would fill his wheel barrel with containers of water and other nutrients for the tree. He would then begin the nearly two hour hike to the young sapling oak tree and water it. Now look at it--it's fine--it's thriving."
As I looked at the tree and then as we began to run again, I thought about discipleship. What if you and I were as invested in the spiritual formation of others as this man was in the oak tree thriving? What if you and I consistently "packed a wheel barrel full with containers of water and other nutrients" and made the arduous two-hour hike to invest in the eternities of others?
Who are you discipling like this? Are you a tree that was planted once upon a time and left to attempt survival on your own? If so--I'm sorry. Let's begin the one-on-one watering.
It was a beautiful tree. It will live longer than any of us...
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