Learning to bend

Personal Photo: The mountainside is full of trees, all different sizes, all different ages. They all must bend in order to stay upright, and often the tallest, oldest tree must learn to bend the most. Throughout all the swaying and forces that they endure, their roots remain firm!

Wind. What an unpredictable display of power and force that we experience every time we feel the wind. Sometimes just a gentle breeze, while other times whooshing gusts that make it hard to hear anything else besides it. Last weekend when Clay and I ran away to Tennessee for a few days, we couldn't help but notice how utterly windy it was on one of the days. It would be seemingly calm where my mom and I sat, but we could hear the rustling trees in the distance, growing closer and closer until we were given the show of the beautiful colors on the mountainside dancing and swaying one way and then another. She and I were amazed at the strength of the trees, the incredible ability of something so strong and firm to be able to bend under the force of the wind. We could tell which trees had no life in them, for they were stiff as a board. My mom and I sat there for hours together enjoying the show and catching up.

The ways that the biggest trees bent when the wind hit them got us considering how important it is that we bend too, that we are not so rigid that we break under pressure. I want to be clear that bending does not mean flexibility in the foundational beliefs of our faith, and it does not mean that we are to bend the rules of faith in order to fit societal needs and personal wants and temptations. Rather, the concept of learning to bend and applying it to our faith really comes into play in the sense that we have the ability to bend when the pressures of the world build up, when we can take our living faith and it moves to accommodate whatever stresses we are under. Bending is part of being alive, and it shows flexibility in the ways that even though the world tries to get us to break, the devil constantly puts pressure on us, that we are able to keep the roots of our faith and bend, keeping firm in our beliefs.

One of the biggest pressures we experience around us is the pressure of temptation. The devil is constantly in our faces with things that he thinks we want, trying to expose our weakness and get us to take steps away from God, one at a time. 1 Corinthians 10:13 addresses this concept when it states "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it." Here we can see that God provides the ability for us to bend, He is what keeps our faith from dying, and us turning rigid in the wind. We are never put under more stress than we are able to handle, with God's help. We are directly told here that we will be able to endure and escape temptations, as long as we have God.

Another important piece of this application of learning to bend is adaptability. We must be able to adapt in situations in order to find God, to know how, when, and where to seek Him. Adapting in our different situations to keep the faith prevents us from breaking; it really is the brains behind the operation of bending and not being flexible with our faith, but instead being flexible in how our faith is applied. John 16:33 is one of the best examples in demonstrating why we have the ability to be adaptable: "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” Here, we are told that our tribulations, our forces, our stresses will never be able to outweigh or undermine the truth in Christ, the strength of having roots set deep in the foundation of God. Regardless of our situation, we are saved, and therefore have the ability to adapt to seek Him out at all times, and in all places.

Clay and I turned on the television last week during our supper, and we turned on a National Geographic show about Orcas. While I am not personally a fan of B1 Killer Whales, I learned much about their hunting techniques. They hunt a specific type of seal, and these seals rest on floating pieces of ice. When B1 Killer Whales find them, they team up in their pod to create a wave intended to wash the seal off the ice and into the water, making them easier to catch. During the show, the pod found a seal on an enormous sheet of ice, one that was too large for them to use their wave-washing hunting technique. Instead, they swam underneath the large ice sheet, and used the force from their tails to shatter the ice from below, therefore make the seal's protection much smaller. Throughout the hour long show, Clay and I saw incredible adaptability demonstrated through these whales, and I couldn't help but think about the determination it takes to be able to accomplish what they did time after time.

Our journey here on earth is not so different; once we realize we have the amazing potential to bend in the wind, we are then able to find that gritty determination to adapt, regardless of the situation. James 1:2-4 recognizes the balance between the force of wind and the value in learning to bend and adapt. It reads, "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." The greatest way to bend is to find joy in the growing pains, to seek God and trust fully in His plans for us, knowing that He is developing a strong warrior for His glory. Knowing we are bending, not breaking is critical in remaining faithful servants of the Lord. Just like the B1 Orcas, we can find different ways to handle the stresses put on us by ourselves, our peers, and strangers, and in turn be rewarded with strong faith and a toolbelt full of resources for us to use when we feel the wind coming again.

We can only bend when we are alive in Christ, just like the trees can only bend when they are alive. When our faith dies, we becoming rigid and stiff, unable to bend to adapt to different circumstances. We are then liable to break when we feel the wind. Romans 6:11 reminds us that "So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus." In this way, we can see the importance of keeping our active faith in Christ at the forefront of our mind, especially when we are feeling the pressures of temptation and stress. Adapting to be able to apply that living faith is what equips us with the ability to remain firm in our faith, while also being determined to find God in all situations. God is with us all the time, my friends, and while the wind might seem too strong, or the reward might seem unattainable, being able to bend and apply God's promises and our faith in Him is what makes us effective children of the Lord!