The story of three trees.
Anonymous
Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods. They were discussing their
hopes
and dreams when the first tree said, "Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I
could
be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with
intricate
carving and everyone would see the beauty."
Then the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings
and
queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. Everyone will
feel
safe in me because of the strength of my hull."
Finally the third tree said, "I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest
tree
in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill and look up to my branches,
and
think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the
greatest tree of all time and people will always remember me."
After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true, a group of!
woodsmen
came upon the trees. When one came to the first tree he said, "This looks like a
strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the wood to a carpenter," and he
began
cutting it down. The tree was happy, because he knew that the carpenter would
make
him into a treasure chest.
At the second tree the woodsman said, "This looks like a strong tree, I should
be
able to sell it to the shipyard." The second tree was happy because he knew he
was
on his way to becoming a mighty ship.
When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened because he
knew
that if they cut him down his dreams would not come true. One of the woodsmen
said,
"I don't need anything special from my tree, I'll take this one," and he cut it
down.
When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a feed box for
animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled with hay.
This was not at all what he had prayed for. The second tree was cut and made
into a
small fishing boat. His dreams of being a mighty ship and carrying kings had
come to
an end. The third tree was cut into large pieces and left alone in the dark. The
years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams.
Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed
the
baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first tree. The man
wished
that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this manger would have to do.
The
tree could feel the importance of this event and knew that it had held the
greatest
treasure of all time.
Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the second tree.
One
of them was tired and went to sleep. While they were out on the water, a great
storm
arose and the tree didn't think it was strong enough to keep the men safe. The
men
woke the sleeping man, and He stood and said "Peace" and the storm stopped. At
this
time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.
Finally, someone came and got the third d tree. It was carried through the
streets
as the people mocked the man who was carrying it. When they came to a stop, the
man
was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a hill. When
Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the
top
of the hill and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been
crucified
on it.
The moral of this story is that when things don't seem to be going your way,
always
know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust in Him, He will give
you
great gifts. Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they
had
imagined. We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know that
His
ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best.
Please feel free to copy this and send it to friends so He may inspire more
people on the way. May your day be blessed. And until we meet again, may God
cradle you in the palm of His hand.
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