Planted in God 扎根在上帝里
Dexu Xia
They will be like a tree planted by the water. Jeremiah 17:8
“The wind is tossing the lilacs.” With that opening line of her springtime poem “May,” poet Sara Teasdale captured a vision of lilac bushes waving in gusty breezes. But Teasdale was lamenting a lost love, and her poem soon turned sorrowful.
Our backyard lilacs also encountered a challenge. After having their most lush and beautiful season, they faced the axe of a hard-working lawn man who “trimmed” every bush, chopping them to stubs. I cried. Then, three years later—after barren branches, a bout of powdery mildew, and my faithless plan to dig them up—our long-suffering lilacs rebounded. They just needed time, and I simply needed to wait for what I couldn’t see.
The Bible tells of many people who waited by faith despite adversity. Noah waited for delayed rain. Caleb waited forty years to live in the promised land. Rebekah waited twenty years to conceive a child. Jacob waited seven years to marry Rachel. Simeon waited and waited to see the baby Jesus. Their patience was rewarded.
In contrast, those who look to humans “will be like a bush in the wastelands” (Jeremiah 17:6). Poet Teasdale ended her verse in such gloom. “I go a wintry way,” she concluded. But “blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,” rejoiced Jeremiah. “They will be like a tree planted by the water” (vv. 7–8).
The trusting stay planted in God—the One who walks with us through the joys and adversities of life.
What do you know about God that stirs your trust in Him? How will you plant your trust deeper in His steadying soil?
Heavenly Father, when my life feels barren or buffeted by stiff winds, please plant me deeper in Your steadying love.
他必像树栽于水旁。—耶利米书17章8节
美国女诗人莎拉 · 蒂斯黛尔（Sara Teasdale）在《五月》这首描写春光的诗中，以“紫丁香在狂风中起舞”为开头，捕捉了紫丁香在疾风中摆动的画面。其实，诗人是感叹已逝的爱情，诗句很快就转为悲伤。
我家后院的紫丁香也曾面临考验。在它的花季盛开后，勤劳的园丁“修剪”了每株紫丁香，几乎只剩下树根，让我伤心落泪。光秃空荡的枝干一度遭受霉害，我差点绝望地想将树根铲除。但三年过后，这些饱受折磨的紫丁香竟重展生命力。原来它们只是需要时间，而我需要为那尚未成就的事耐心等候。
许多圣经人物都曾在危难中凭信心等候：挪亚等待迟来的雨水；迦勒等了40年才进入应许之地；利百加等了20年才怀孕；雅各等了7年才迎娶拉结；西面等了又等，终于见到婴孩耶稣。他们的耐心等候最终都得到回报。
相反地，那些倚靠世人的“必像沙漠的杜松”（耶利米书17章6节）。蒂斯黛尔的诗以“我走向寒风凛冽中”这阴郁的句子作为结束；而耶利米则欣喜欢呼：“倚靠耶和华、以耶和华为可靠的，那人有福了！他必像树栽于水旁。”（7-8节）
倚靠上帝的人扎根在上帝里面，上帝会陪我们走过生命中的顺境和逆境。
你对上帝的认识，如何激发你的信心？
你会如何扎根在上帝里面，并完全倚靠祂？
天父，当我感到生命枯干或遭疾风袭击时，
求祢让我能更深地扎根在祢不变的爱中，信心不动摇。