Wednesday, December 16, 2009

12 Days of Christmas Stories and Scriptures Day 3

Day3--Luke 1:39-45

The Story of the Three Trees

Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods.They were discussing there 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 inticate 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 the straightest tree in the forest.
People will come to 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 tree.When one came to the first he said," 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 new the carpenter
would make him into a treasure chest.

At the second tree the woodsmen said," This looks like a strong tree, I should be able to sell it
to a shipyard."The second tree was happy because he knew he was on his way to become a
mighty ship.

When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened because 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, so I'll take this one," and cut it down.

When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a feed box for the animals. He
was then placed in a barn and filled with hay. This was not at all what he prayed for.

The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His dreams of becoming a mighty
ship and carrying Kings had come to an end.

The third was cut into large pieces and left alone in the dark.
The years went by, and the trees forgot about there dreams. Then one day, a woman and man
came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed the baby on the hay in the feed box that was
made for 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 he
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 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 he had carried the
King of Kings in its boat.

Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through the streets as people
mocked the man who was carring 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 the hill.When Sunday came, the tree came to realize
that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be close to GOD as possible, because
Jesus was crucified on it.

The moral of the 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, he will give you great gifts. Each of the
trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they 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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