The righteous flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the Lord; they flourish in the courts of our God. In old age they still produce fruit; they are always green and full of sap. (Psalm 92:12- 14)

The palm tree lives long and well even in the middle of the desert. From the rocky crags of the mountain the great cedars of Lebanon extend their reach. The righteous likewise flourish in adversity because their roots are close to God. Like these great trees we are to reach down to our foundations. In our origins with God we will find what is needed to continue flexible, flowing, and fruitful.

Above is an early 20th Century painting of a Marionite Christian festival taking place around a Cedar of Lebanon (artist unknown)