THE
THREE
TREES
Once upon a mountain top,
three little trees stood and dreamed of what
they wanted to become when they grew up. The
first little tree looked at the stars and
said: "I want to hold treasure. I want to be
covered with gold and filled with precious
stones. I will be the most beautiful treasure
chest in the
world!" |
The second little tree
looked out at the small stream trickling by
on its way to the ocean. "I want to be
traveling mighty waters and carrying powerful
kings. I'll be the strongest ship in the
world!" |
The third little tree looked
down into the valley below where busy men and
women worked in a busy town. "I don't want to
leave the mountain top at all. I want to grow
so tall that when people look at me, they'll
raise their eyes to heaven and think of God.
I will be the tallest tree in the world."
|
Years passed. The rains came,
the sun shone and the three little trees grew
tall. |
One
day three woodcutters climbed the
mountain. The first woodcutter looked at the
first tree and said, "This tree is beautiful.
It is perfect for me." With a swoop of his
shining axe, the first tree fell. "Now I
shall be made into a beautiful chest, I shall
hold wonderful treasure!" The first tree
said. |
The second
woodcutter looked at the second tree and said
"This tree is strong, it is perfect for me."
With a swoop of his shining axe the second
tree fell. "Now I shall sail mighty waters"
thought the second tree "I shall be a strong
ship for mighty
kings!" |
The
third tree felt her heart sink when the last
woodcutter looked way. She stood straight and
tall and pointed bravely to heaven. But the
woodcutter never even looked up. "Any kind of
tree will do for me," he muttered. With a
swoop of his shining axe the third tree fell.
|
The
first tree rejoiced when the woodcutter
brought her to a carpenters shop, but the
carpenter fashioned her into a feed box for
animals. The once beautiful tree was not
covered with gold nor with treasure. She was
coated in sawdust and filled with hay for
hungry farm
animals. |
The
second tree smiled when the woodcutter took
her to a shipyard, but no mighty sailing ship
was made that day.Instead the once strong
tree was hammered and sawed into a simple
fishing boat. She was too small and too weak
to sail to an ocean, or even a river, instead
she was taken to a little
lake. |
The
third tree was confused when the woodcutter
cut her into strong beams and left her in a
lumberyard. "What happened?" the once tall
tree wondered "All I ever wanted was to stay
on the mountain top and point to
God. |
"Many many days
and nights passed. The three
trees nearly forgot their
dreams. |
But one night golden starlight
poured over the first tree as a woman placed
her newborn baby in the feed box. "I wish I
could make a cradle for him." her husband
whispered. The mother squeezed his hand and
smiled as the starlight shone on the smooth
and sturdy wood. "This manger is beautiful"
she said. And suddenly the first tree knew
that he was holding the greatest treasure in
the world. |
| One evening a tired traveler
and his friends crowded into the old fishing
boat. The traveler fell asleep as the second
tree sailed quietly out into the lake. Soon a
thundering and thrashing storm arose. The
little tree shuddered, she knew she didn't
have the strength to carry so many passengers
safely through the wind and the rain. The
tired man awakened. He stood up, stretched
out his hand and said "Peace". The storm
stopped as quickly as it had begun. And
suddenly the second tree knew that he was
carrying the King of heaven and
earth. |
| One Friday morning, the third
tree was startled when her beams were yanked
from the forgotten woodpile. She flinched as
she was carried through an angry jeering
crowd. |
| She shuddered when soldiers
nailed a man's hands to her.
She felt ugly, harsh and
cruel. |
| But, on
Sunday morning, when the sun rose and the
earth trembled with joy beneath her, the
third tree knew that God's love had changed
everything. It had made the third tree
strong. And every time people thought of the
third tree, they would think of God. That was
better than being the tallest tree in the
world.
So the next time you feel down because you
didn't get what you wanted, just sit tight
and be happy because God is
thinking of something better to give
you. ~Author
Unknown~
|
Images
of Christ
|