willow

So, as you can see from the photo, I didn't get around to taking it until the last minute today. Fortunately for me, it was a full moon, so that made for a nice shot. I just kept forgetting to take my camera with me when I went out.

I am feeling somewhat better today, and attended a meeting, although afterward I was so tired I came straight home and took a nap.

I have a mental picture of a place that I "go" to when I want to be with Jesus. It's under this huge weeping willow tree whose branches brush the ground and shut out all the rest of the world. A brook runs by the trunk of the tree, and there is a wooden dock where I can watch the water tumbling by. There are chairs under the tree, which change depending on the mood I am in. But Jesus is always there waiting. 

Sometimes I am fully present there, I can feel the grass, hear the water babble, smell the freshness of the air. Other days I am more distracted, and struggle to stay there.

This morning I went there and rested there a bit, talking to Jesus. I had a few moments of good focus, of real connection. But then I felt the tasks of the day ahead pulling me away. I wrestled with my mind to keep it under the willow tree, but kept getting distracted. Finally I sighed and told Jesus I had to go, the day was waiting to begin. I had thank-you cards to write, e-mails to answer, a house to straighten.

And Jesus said, "Well, why don't you write your thank-you cards under the willow tree?" It was an amazing idea. I had always before seen myself leaving the tree to re-enter daily life. Why hadn't I thought of bringing daily life to the tree before? I thought the willow tree would be a perfect place for writing thank-you notes, and asked Jesus half jokingly if the willow tree had wifi. He challenged me to try it out.

The rest of the day, I pictured myself doing tasks under our weeping willow tree. It meant that Jesus was a part of whatever I was doing. Even in the meeting I attended. We sat around a room in a circle, and I could almost see the leaves of the willow tree drooping all around us, encircling us. And Jesus was there, enjoying our conversations.

It was a beautiful day. Is this what it's like to practice the presence of Jesus? Is this what it means to abide in Him? 

All I know is that I want to live the rest of my life under that weeping willow tree. And I have no doubt that that willow tree will be waiting for me in eternity, just as I have been picturing it.