Hi everybody,

Take a walk around the Snake River Greenbelt in Idaho Falls. You will see all kinds of trees: Bechtel Crab, European White Birch, Ponderosa Pine, Green Ash, Horse Chestnut, Bur Oak, Deborah Maple, Little Leaf Linden, Crabapple, Eastern Cottonwood, Weeping Birch, Thornless Honeylocust, and Box Elder, etc.

My favorite on the greenbelt is the Bur Oak. There are several on the East bank and one centered also in the roundabout circle. The Hebrew word for oak is my family name – Elon.

How did all these beautiful trees get here by the river? They certainly didn’t get there by themselves. Certain landscapers planted them along the river in this southeastern Idaho desert. They all have a transplanted status.

Likewise, we didn’t plant ourselves in God’s kingdom here in Idaho Falls. We couldn’t do anything on our own. The King is the One who plants us by the rivers of water. We are the planting of Yahweh, that He might be glorified (Isaiah 61:3). Every spiritual tree planted in the dusty, windy, sagebrush desert of Southeastern Idaho is a mighty testimony to the power of God’s sovereign grace. The Creator gets the praise for the beauty that we see in this region.

And yet as spiritual trees in this city, we have great responsibility (Psalm 1). We must delight in God’s Law. We cannot compromise. We must meditate day and night on His authoritative message. We are the Bereans who test everything. This motto must continuously be at the forefront on the river: Always the Word.

The pure Word is your streams in the desert on this first beautiful morning in August. Locate your Bible today. Don’t let the scriptures just sit on the shelf all week in your home. Let Jesus speak to you, strengthen you, and set you firmly in His will.

roots by the river,
Todd