The Giving Tree

There was once a great apple tree and a little boy. They would spend hours and hours together. The boy would play in the tree's branches, sleep at her roots and eat of her apples. And the tree loved the boy.

One day, the boy came to the tree. The tree was delighted and beckoned, "Come and play!" But the boy was no longer a boy; he was now a young man, and he was interested in making a living, but he didn't know how.

"Here," the tree said, "take my apples and sell them." The young man did just that, and the tree was happy.

Years passed, and the tree was lonely without the young man. One day, he returned, and the tree was delighted, but he was now interested in settling down. He wanted to build a house.

"Here," the tree said, "Cut off my branches and build your house." The young man did just that, and the tree was happy.

Years passed, and the tree still missed her friend. One day, the man returned, and the tree was again overjoyed. But the man was now older and tired of life; he wanted to get away from it all.

"Here," the tree offered, "Cut me down. Make for yourself a boat, and sail the world in it." The man did just that, and the tree was happy.

Many years passed, seasons came and went, and the tree was very lonely. She missed her friend, and she often thought about the old days, when they had such fun. Finally, she saw her friend coming over the hill, and she was delighted.

But the boy was now an old man, no longer able to play or make money or to sail away. And he was tired.

"Here, my friend," the tree said, "I still have a pretty good stump left. Won't you sit and rest?" The old man did that, and the tree was happy.

When I look back, I can see that God has brought into my life many "giving trees"as well - loving, warm people who gave a part of themselves to me so that I could grow. I couldn't possibly be where and who I am today without these saints that God has brought into my life. Last night, I prayed too that God would make me a "giving tree" - Jesus said "Freely you have received, now freely give."

There are a lot of people out there who need us to bring to them the Greatest Need of all - we really need to pray that God will grant us the heart to give to our unsaved friends the good news - don't you think?