As the late spring storm front ripped through our county, we went to the most interior and most strongly reinforced area of our house. The lights went out. The winds howled. The hail pounded on the roof. Torrents of rain blasted against our windows as the gusts of wind rattled our screens and whipped at the trees. After a couple of hours of darkness and the sound of distant sirens, the electricity returned and we settled in for our night’s sleep. “Just another thunderstorm,” we assumed. WRONG!

    When morning light revealed the results of the previous night’s storm, we were shocked. Fallen limbs were everywhere. A toppled chimney lay in the front yard down the street. Shingles were missing on many nearby homes. Fences were blown down in yards all over the neighborhood. Most amazingly, all over the county, many trees were blown down, houses damaged, power lines broken, and advertising signs bent and broken. We’re not talking about blowing down a few little dinky newly planted trees and a shingle or two blown away. No we’re talking major, widespread damage.

    Over the last several weeks as I’ve surveyed the damage, one pattern emerged as I noticed the trees that fell; the trees that blew down or lost significant limbs were either isolated “loner trees” which were fully exposed to the wind, or they were trees located on outer edge of a larger clump of trees. In other words, trees that didn’t have their roots interlocked with other trees, or didn’t have a number of other trees close by to help absorb, dissipate, or block the wind, simply weren’t strong enough to stand on their own.

    Now it doesn’t take a genius to recognize this pattern as a metaphor for spiritual life. When Satan wants to bring down one of God’s children, invariably he finds a way to separate that person from other believers. It may begin with a boredom at church, or being with other Christians. It may be a change in running buddies, as companions and hangouts change. It may just be spiritual malaise. The tactics of our enemy, however, are clear: separate and conquer. Get the believer away from other believers, get that person bored with spiritual disciplines, and get that believer involved with others who do not support his or her Christian commitments and values. Then when the storms of trial and temptation come along, they’re much easier targets and much easier to destroy spiritually.

The tactics of our enemy, however, are clear: separate and conquer.

    How important is recognizing this concept? Vital! Read the book of Hebrews and hear the Holy Spirit’s warning about our temptation to drift away from God (2:1), our need for encouragement and vigilance (3:12-13), our need to move on to maturity (6:1-6), and our tendency to skip our meeting together with other Christians (10:19-25). These concerns echo Jesus’ desire that we find those that wander away and need to be reclaimed (Luke 15; Matthew 18:12-14). “So what should I do?”

    Glad you asked!

    First, look around your Bible study group, your Bible class, and your congregation and notice who is not there any more. If you don’t know who is missing, then get a class roster or the church directory and go down the list and look for folks you haven’t seen lately.

    Next, pray for them and for God to bless your outreach to them.

    Third, make contact. Give them a phone call or meet them for lunch and just say, “I’ve been missing you and wanted to reconnect and see how things are going!” This is NOT a “Why haven’t you been at Bible study?” call. They may have been there and you just missed them. Or they may have had their feelings hurt and just needed someone to miss them. You are trying to make contact and let them know someone cares and has noticed that they haven’t been around.

    Finally, look for ways to re-involve them in your life and the life of your spiritual family. Get others involved in reaching out to them or to others like them. A little consistent effort over several months makes a huge difference in the lives of those who have not been away from God’s family very long!

    When storms come and heavy winds blow, the trees that are isolated and on the fringes are the first to fall. Let’s make sure those in our sphere of influence find themselves in the protection of the forest!

Title: "On the Edge"
Author: Phil Ware
Publication Date: June 25, 2001

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