2.2.26 – What Do You See?

One of my favorite expressions in life is to always view people from the finish line and pour into them accordingly. In other words, look at people as they are going to be when their journey is completely finished with success (Phil. 1:6; 2:12–13). The way you treat people is the way you are going to be treated (Matt. 7:12). That sounds familiar, doesn't it?

In this week's Torah portion, we are going to find out a lot about names. We are also going to find out that, in spite of having all the pieces of the puzzle, our perspective on "the matter" may be completely inefficient if not wrong. One of the challenges that we all face is taking new information and processing it with old programming. This leads to disaster for each detail involved in building the puzzle of life. As with computers in the early days, sometimes programs had to be uninstalled and new ones put in their place. In modern vernacular, we don't need to try to force pieces of the puzzle into the puzzle—they all fit. But sometimes we need to dismantle the puzzle and start all over. You still have all the pieces of the puzzle, but forcing them to fit isn't the best or most fun way to build a puzzle.

Today, on the traditional calendar, is Tu B'Shevat, the Rosh Hashanah (New Year) of the tree. Huh? As we have seen in Scripture, we are likened to trees. In the context of war, Moses tells us that we are trees (Deut. 20:19):

"When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (the tree of the field is man) to employ them in the siege."
(Deut. 20:19)

Covenantally, we are branches of a vine, as part of the commonwealth of Israel; a grafted-in olive tree; in righteousness, a mighty oak; in relation to our inheritance, a fig tree; our bodies likened to an acacia tree, etc.

What is strange about this season—dead in winter—is that this marks the time to determine the maturity of trees (Lev. 19:23–25). It is a day to celebrate the date when the trees become adorned with fruits. Huh?

Even the master of the obvious knows that there are no fruits growing on trees this time of year in God's holy land. The date we celebrate for the trees is actually the time when the trees are barren, cold, naked, orphaned from their foliage, and orphaned from their produce.

We celebrate this annual day by eating fruits from the tree, which at this point the tree is not capable of producing. What is the message? In the land of Israel at this point, most of the winter's rain has already saturated the earth by this traditional day—the 15th day of Shevat (Tu B'Shevat). At this time of year, we can be sure that there is a new vitality, a new sap ascending into the tree, allowing for future rejuvenation and fruit production.

At the surface, there is nothing going on right now, but that is only on the surface. Tu B'Shevat is the celebration of potential—invisible potential, but real and authentic. All the future growth of the tree is possible only because of the sap rising in the tree at this time. Potential has been established, and that is why many celebrate today. Again, at the surface, you say, "I don't see any change whatsoever. The trees are barren and lifeless." But precisely at this moment, life secretly starts to develop anew in this tree—i.e., the man.

You cannot always see the fruit, but you can still celebrate the process of growth itself. Because the most important thing in life is to identify and celebrate the existing potential, not getting frustrated by the process. Living life with the hope of and imagining the final product now. To the point that we already sit down and take a wide variety of fruits, put them on the table, and ask a blessing to the One who is the Lord our God, King of the universe, who creates fruit from the trees.

Ahh, but "you don't know my situation, Mr. Obvious. The trees are dead." No, no, my superficial visionary, there is life in those trees. Hence, we do not see death. We see the potential for life, and we are already filled with joy as though the process has been completed (Rom. 4:17)—even though it has not been completed.

I would never make light of your situation of trees/people in your life—never. But maybe today is a day to step back and project the potential fruit-bearing as your vision for those in your life, and then fertilize and trust the process.

Maybe we should see men like the blind man who was healed (Mark 8:24 :-). Celebrate the potential, not what you see!

"And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees walking."
(Mark 8:24)

Shalom,
Alan