C. Rae Johnson - The Juniper Tree

C. Rae Johnson

Copyright 2018 by C. Rae Johnson

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of author.

All rights reserved. Use by permission.

craejohnsonfaithbasedbooks@gmail.com

Cover design: John Johnson

Photography:91075662DenisBelitskiy / Dreamstime.com

First printing 2018

Printed in the United States of America

Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version (Public domain) of the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, New American Standard Version and New King James Version.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

"Scripture quotations taken from the New American

Standard Bible (NASB), Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org "

Scripture taken form the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-387-45315-3

This book is dedicated in honor to my Heavenly Father through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the refuge, nourishment, life giving water, rest and strength we all need, to survive as well as thrive.

For the Glory of God Alone

Soli Deo Gloria

I would like to extend a big heartfelt thank you to my wonderful husband John for his creative work in cover design. The stunning beauty of Gods creation in the nighttime sky is truly an amazing sight to see and perfect for a Juniper Tree.

I would like to extend a sincerely heartfelt thank you to a dear friend and brother in Christ, Michael John Encarnacin for his help with bringing out the fantastic colors of the Milky Way backdrop for the Juniper Tree book cover. It truly displays a portion of Gods handiwork in the beautiful majestic firmament.

Strong Beauty

And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Psalm 1:3KJV

T he Juniper Tree, how beautiful in all its rugged crookedness. At first glance, it may present to be deformed, impaired and quite blemished, with all of its twists and turns, knots and roughness, yet holds a wonderment all its own in how it is capable of standing; looking as though it has done all, to even stand. It can appear as if it would have fallen a long time ago.

But Juniper trees are long lived and very slow growing. Some reach the ripe old age of a thousand years, climbing through its twists and turns to possibly reach twenty-five feet in height, as it is sculpted by the wind. They endure the hardship of a drier climate, persevering through the hot temperatures and poor or drier soil. A Juniper trees taproot (primary root) goes deep into the earth, with smaller lateral fibrous roots spreading outward. Junipers can even survive several thousand feet above well-watered washes. Their outer covering can have scale-like leaves with newly sharp small sprigs, presenting beautiful blue berries.

Upon a glimpse of the Juniper tree, we may notice that there is not much in surrounding nourishment, yet it still stands. What keeps it so strong, despite the storms it must have weathered? What allows it to bear fruit, as it nourishes the birds of the air and the mammals of the ground, along with containing many therapeutic benefits for people? How does a Juniper tree twist and hang so low to the ground, without completely falling over, then suddenly shoot upwards again in its growth, toward the light? It is as if, it will not give up!

Its misshapen and often distorted appearance may perhaps frighten some observers, as it seems to defy logic for its growth. One might think that it could break easily as well as topple over, at any given moment, because its weight proportions seem to be, quite imbalanced. Yet it doesnt. It grows and grows, pressing onward, forward and upward, despite the windy storms that helped to hammer its shape. It is an example of perseverance through the storms of life, while still being able to offer some form of help, some small amount of covering, for someone else hurting through exhaustion and despair.

We can learn, through this particular tree, that no matter what weve been through in life, we can still help others in need. We can have a firm foundation that is as strong as a rock, with our taproot being secure in the reality of truth; so that nothing will be able to shake us loose from our root system. That is the true beauty; the beauty of the Juniper Tree.

Though our beauty may not be depicted on the outside, such as this tree, but rather on the inside, what we do outwardly through our actions, does have an impact. It signifies to others where our beauty lies. It is through these actions and our behaviors towards others, those both less fortunate than us, as well as those who are very fortunate, seemingly rich in life, that allow others to see our true identity. How we ultimately treat others, those who are in great need, and those who are not, ironically displays if we are knotted and twisted up on the inside, ready to fall.

We are all like a seed, traveling along, looking for a spot to plant and to grow. Will we bring forth good fruit? Or will we produce bad fruit, or yet, be barren, yielding nothing at the time of harvest? Will we withstand the storms of life like a Juniper tree? Will we still offer some cover and compassion, some help, to those in need, despite ourselves facing difficult growth challenges, along with not having much at all to even offer? Are our root systems intact; or are they rotting in a decay of bitterness?

If we do indeed have any root of bitterness growing, we truly do need to purge ourselves of it. It is growing because we have unresolved unforgiveness within us. It can be from anything or anyone really, within our entire life. We may have been hurt so terribly, so shockingly, so undeservingly, that a root started to grow. Perhaps we may have thought about forgiving, or, we may have vowed to ourselves that we will never forgive someone.

But when we dont forgive, we start to carry a burden, a weight so heavy that negatively affects almost every aspect of our lives, our future, as well as others around us. We then wear it as a badge while we try to fill the deep void caused by the hurt, with other things, including our own busyness; so, we dont have time to feel the pain.