An Affirmation

Back when I was on tour with Covenant Players, we performed at a church and on the back of the bulletin was this wonderful affirmation. I've kept it all these years and just now making it so that it can be hung and displayed in our home. It's just so beautiful and I felt that the fig tree would make a wonderful background. Here is what it says:

I will stand firm in the Lord today. Taking a mighty tree as my image, I will see myselfwell rooted in my faith and reaching out beyond myself.
My roots are deep, drawing nourishment from the Bible ~ the word of God ~ the Spirit,and the love of my Christian community.

My trunk is strong, supporting my limbs and branches with the thick growth of accumulated experience. Some rings on my trunk are narrow ~ from the difficult years. Some rings on my trunk arewide ~ from the years blessed with rich personal growth. My experiences allow me to treat others with compassion, knowing the range of their sorrow and joys. When threatening winds blow, my trunk can bend ~ yielding to a storm just enough for it to pass by without damaging my integrity.

My branches stretch high and wide, reaching toward the sky in a gesture of praise. As the tree offers a resting place and a home to birds and animals, so I can offer a refuge, friendship,and love to those around me today.
Today, I stand firm in the Lord. With the nourishment of the Word, the Spirit, and the love of my Christian community welling up in me, I am able to offer God's love, through me, to others.

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