 Once
there were three trees on a hill in the woods.
They were discussing Their hopes and dreams when the first tree
said,
"Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with
gold,
silver And precious gems. I could be decorated with intricate
carving and everyone would see the beauty."
 Then
the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will
take Kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners
of
the world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength
of
my hull."
Finally the third tree said, "I want to grow to be the tallest
and
straightest Tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the
Hill and look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and
God
and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree
of
all time and people will always Remember me."
After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true,
a
group of woodsmen came upon the trees. When one came to the
first
tree he said, "This looks like a strong tree, I think I should
be
able to sell the wood to a Carpenter, "and he began cutting it
down.
The tree was happy, because he knew that the carpenter would
make
him into a treasure chest.
At the second tree the woodsman said, "This looks like a strong
tree. I Should be able to sell it to the shipyard." The second
tree
was happy Because he knew he was on his way to becoming a mighty
ship.
When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was
frightened
Because he knew that if they cut him down his dreams would not
come
True. One of the Woodsmen said, "I don't need anything special
from
my Tree, I'll take this one," and he cut it down.
When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into
a
feed box for animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled
with hay. This
was not At all what he had prayed for.
The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His
dreams Of being a mighty ship and carrying kings had come to an
end.
The third tree was cut into large pieces, and left alone in the
dark.
The years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams.
Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and
They placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made
from
the first tree. The man wished that he could have made a crib
for
the baby, but this manger would have to do. The tree could feel
the
importance of this event and knew that it had held the greatest
treasure of all time.
Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from
the
second Tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep. While they
were out
on the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn't think it
was
strong enough To keep the men safe. The men woke the sleeping
man,
and He stood and Said "Peace" and the Storm stopped. At this
time,
the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.
Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried
through
the Streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it.
When
they came To a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised
in
the air to die at the Top of a hill. When Sunday came, the tree
came
to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the
hill
and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been
crucified on it.
The moral of this story is that when things don't seem to be
going
your Way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place
your
trust in Him, God will give you great gifts.
Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they
had
Imagined.
We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know
that
His Ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best.
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