A windblown tree by the ocean

I recently returned from our church men's retreat at a historic military fort by the ocean. A beautiful place to see God's creation while at the same time be reminded what freedom costs. I took a walk during our 20 minutes of quiet time and came across some trees by the coastline.

I found one of the trees was very different than the rest. Bent, crooked, and not at all what you picture the average tree looking like. The tree pictured above isn't the one I saw, but you get the idea. It was next to several trees that grew in the normal way, straight up. This tree though, was bent in the middle, tried to shoot up and then had another bend in it. The heavy coastal winds had caused it to grow differently than the rest of the trees.  While the majority of trees could withstand the constant pressures, this little tree couldn't. It had it's own unique take on what a tree was supposed to look like.

It was permanently distorted and disfigured.  But it was beautiful.

While I was staring at it, I felt God reminding me that we all have bends and crooks, and notches from the winds we have withstood in life. Life blows harder at some people and they bear the effects of the wind. They are forever changed because of experiences and challenges they have faced. Unique, different, and beautiful; God's image bearers do not look the same. And when we compare ourselves against other trees, we can quickly be discouraged. We ask, why aren't we as tall, as strong, as able to stand against the wind as others are? Our beauty lies not in perfection, but in our unique marks of affliction of which our saviour, Christ Jesus, bore upon himself the greatest scars. When I see strong tall trees, they don't garner my attention as much as trees with bends and breaks in them. And those marks are often permanent, they shape who we are as people.

Lord, please take my bends, imperfections and crooked-ness and make something beautiful out of it.