Executive Care Inc.

December 2009

Welcome to our Holiday edition. This article is still about landscaping, but not with plants, trees, soil and boulders, but with encouragement, faith, character and truth. Not our physical yards, but the “yards of our soul.” They also need “ tending to;” no different than our physical yards, our souls get “weeds”( attitudes) need “pruning” (character development) and do well with regular fertilizing (love and encouragement) and need light (truth/faith ) to grow and be healthy, to “bloom” with peace and joy, to grow with strength and character. These attributes just don’t come, they need to be cultivated; they need to be practiced. Just like a beautiful and fruitful garden, we need the same care; I want to talk about that care in this edition, and specifically about character and faith.

I love nature, plants, and landscaping, I see so much truth in them that I can apply to daily living. A couple weeks ago I was having breakfast with a good friend, who is an arborist by profession. We were talking about this very topic, the truths we see in nature, and he shared a story with me that his instructor taught him while he was studying for his license.

A couple had bought a home in the country and on their new property was a stand of Oak trees, beautiful overall, except the first row. The first row was noticeably distorted, rough, shorter and thicker in stock than the trees behind them. So they decided to remove the first row exposing the taller, greener, more beautifully shaped Oaks. So with the help of some friends, they cut the distorted Oaks down, had quite a pile of wood, which once dried burned hotter than most Oak wood they had bought previously.

Well as winter is, we get storms and some bring high winds. To the couple and their friend’s surprise they noticed that with each strong storm, some of the branches of the Oaks would break, and on occasion a whole tree would come down. This happened for several years until their stand of Oaks had been reduced to about half. At this point they thought it best to get help, worried about disease that if not controlled would soon decimate their beloved Oaks.

The instructor took the call and was the one to come out. Upon hearing the concern and inspecting the Oaks, he asked why the first row of trees were removed, taking note that the stumps were thicker, having tighter growth rings (the yearly growth measurement of any tree) than the other stumps he observed. He also inquired from what direction the winds came from. The couple replied that when they first purchased the home that these Oaks were stunted and unsightly, so they removed them as to view the more beautiful Oaks. They also replied that the winds came from the southwest, understanding then that the first row would have taken the blunt of the winds.

Once hearing this, the instructor gave them the answer they did not expect. The first row of Oaks had grown in the presence of the storms, so they grew more stout, more deeply rooted, and there appearance borne the look of many a storm. They were the “guardians” for the rest of the stand, providing a wind barrier, allowing the rest of Oaks to grow more uniformly in their protection. Without the pressure of the winds, the roots in the second row of Oaks were shallow, their trunks lacked stoutness, and the branches were long and graceful, hence they could not bear up against the winds. The instructor said that it would be just a matter of time before all the Oaks would come down. He recommended a canopy reduction, reducing the branch weight, fertilization to encourage root growth, and time. The couple was grateful for his time and advice, saddened by how foolish they had been.

When I heard this story it amazed me how close to life this was. I see two obvious truths, the mistake that the couple had made by not consulting an expert prior to removing the oaks. And the importance of that first row of Oaks to the rest of the stand. I have made mistakes like that, feeling hurried, and they have cost me.

Currently as a society we are suffering because of financially unsound decisions with our mortgages; our culture has been so prosperous, so trouble free in general, that we have grown without the need to have caution, believing that we are “entitled” to the “American Dream” that has turned into a “nightmare” for many. We have grown accustomed to a culture with instant gratification where bigger is always better, and credit is how we buy our toys. We have lost our way, believing that things and money can “buy” quality of life… and it DOES NOT.

I learned this in Mexico were I spent several summers on mission trips. My equals were happy and content with so little, they spent time talking and laughing, valuing each other, their lives were simple. I learned that quality of life is internal, found within ones character. That struggle is not bad, in fact it was necessary for character to develop. To learn to appreciate the things one does buy, to be content with less, do more with less, and to be grateful. How critical are these lessons, how important that we live them out for our children to see.

Now character, as invaluable as it is, has a partner, can you guess? When “married” together it completes the soul, it is faith. I so love faith, and it is not that flowery, whimsical faith that believes that if I smile at the world it will smile back. It helps to smile yes, but I have received my share of frowns as well. Not everyone or every circumstance smiles back, some want to “take you down”. So character when united with faith to me is best liken to that first row of Oaks, they grow in the presence of adversity, the winds of trial and testing serve to deepen the roots of faith, developing our character, making us real, and causing us to stand “mean and lean” (something we have lacked in our ‘satisfy me now’ culture).

As important as character and faith is, the object of our faith is CRITICAL, and determines our character. A month ago my wife shared a particular Bible lesson with me, I cannot remember the story she read, but her comments I wrote down; they were this, “In this broken world you get a ‘junk load of parts’ of which to build your life with, and since we live in a broken world, life is not fair; some people get ‘better parts’, (more talented, better opportunity, smarter etc.) than we do, but fretting or complaining about it only makes it worse, it gets you nowhere. If anything self pity makes you go backwards in life. Accepting “your parts,” taking ownership of them, is the birth place of character; working with your parts, doing your best, develops your character.

Another comment she made is the need to have an “other world mindedness.” This is where faith comes in, that there is a God who loves me and desires me to know Him. How do I know this aside from the scriptures (The Bible)? His handiwork is evident in all of Creation, like a master painter creating his work of art, so He has made creation for our enjoyment, and as a testimony of His presence. As one acknowledges the landscaper behind the landscape, so creation speaks of His Greatness. With each sunrise and sunset, I am reminded of His ability to hold my life together, despite the challenges and pressures I am facing.

What happens if I do not have an “other world mindedness,” believing that this life is all there is. There is a saying that speaks to the temptation/perspective that one incurs when Godly faith is not active, it goes like this, “Get all you can, can what you get, and sit on the can”. The problem is no one told us that the bottom can fall out. How important it is to our soul to have a personal faith in God. A faith that acknowledges the Cross, His deep love for us, and our deep need to come to Him, to be made right with Him. He is bigger than all our problems, and He is able to forgive and restore us unto Himself. That the hardships we suffer He can use to develop character and deepen faith in Him, and that there is an Eternity, “another world mindedness”, that helps put this life in right perspective.

If you allow this to be part of your character, you will take life and yourself less seriously, you will find hope in time of trial, and He will give you courage to face the challenges and fears that seek to “take you down”. I know this to be true, I am a growing testimony of His handiwork, far from perfect, and at times amazed at how “human” I still am; but when in humility I kneel in prayer, burdened by a worry or fear, and spend time in His presence, I rise a SOLDIER. His hope, His strength, His wisdom, His direction, His scriptures, and His LOVE, quickens my steps, as I go to face my giant.

If you would want to learn more on how to know the LORD in a personal way, please visit my website under publications, click on December part 2. Thank you so much for reading, I trust that what I said encouraged and challenged you. May you have a blessed Christmas, and thank you for spending your time with me; it means so much, especially this time. God Bless.