by Nan Jones   @NanJonesAuthor

I’ve heard it said that life goes on.
And so it does.

I rested beneath our aged apple tree. Just a few months ago it stood stark against a gray winter’s sky. Bare limbs stretched toward heaven, yearning for spring. A severe and necessary pruning had created sharp angular gaps in its beautiful linear silhouette – gaping holes interrupting the tree’s canopy.

Would the gaping holes always be there?

Would the sharp angular gaps continue to interrupt the linear flow of this once beautiful tree?

It would seem so.

But now, as I rest beneath the apple tree on this bright May morning several months later, signs and sounds all about the tree proclaim life. Fresh sprouts testifying of growth, shoot from the sharp, drastic cuts of winter. Blossoms abound. Birds sing their praise. The branches clap their hands in the gentle breeze.

Yes, life goes on.

Especially a life that encounters sharp, drastic cuts, standing exposed and vulnerable beneath a darkened sky.

Life goes on.

Especially a life surrendered and dependent on the Lord her Maker.

Out of the sharp, drastic cuts comes new, fruitful growth. Out of the gaping holes in the heart, God’s mercy flows, creating a complete canopy of love that  shelters and heals the hurt.

When we need God the most, that’s when He is the nearest. Like the life-giving sap flowing through the limbs of the apple tree, God’s Spirit flows through His child preserving and maintaining life.

He is there during the broken times.
He is there during the pruning times.
He there during the fruitful times.
He is there. Always.

Life goes on.

“I would have lost heart, 
unless I had believed that I would see 
the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
Wait on the Lord; 
Be of good courage, 
and He shall strengthen your heart; 
Wait, I say, on the Lord!” 
Psalm 27:13-14

A Tweetable to Encourage Others
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Have you heard? 
 My first book, The Perils of a Pastor’s Wife, is releasing on June 30, 2015! God is so faithful. I can’t wait to share my story with you. It is available for preorder now on Amazon