I have fond memories of growing up and observing the pine trees in our front yard. I know most kids probably don’t pay much attention to the trees in their yard unless they have a tree house in them, but I was always fascinated by these pine trees. The speed with which they grew, their vitality despite seasonal changes, and the way they whispered when the winds blew always intrigued me. But more than anything, the way that these pine trees could lose all of their needles and so quickly replace them again always amazed me. In a matter of days these towering trees would cover our yard in orange and brown needles, and in just as little time (at least it seemed to me as a child) these trees would have new, thick, green needles once more. These pine trees would rid themselves of their old coverings and cover themselves in new needles time and time again without fail. As an adult, now I think back to these trees and I hear the words of Paul from 2 Corinthians 5,
14For the love of Christ urges us on, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died. 15And he died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised for them. 16From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. 17So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!
The way that Paul describes being “in Christ” – having a relationship with Jesus, a life lived with, through, and like Jesus – reminds me of the pine trees in my yard growing up. Like the pine trees, Paul wrote that once we are in Christ we shed our old life and replace it with a new life. I imagine for some that these words are terrifying, that the thought of purging one’s self of your identity ranges from undesirable to painful. Contrarily, I also imagine that for some the idea of starting over is the chance of a lifetime, a priceless opportunity. However, what I learned from those pine trees in my front yard so long ago is that casting off the old and becoming something new is often a repetitive process.
I’ve been trying to live my life “in Christ” now for as long as I can remember, and every so often I still have to shake off some of those pine needles from my old life, habits, thoughts, and behaviors. That’s the thing about old ways of life, they have a tendency to come back, to take root again, and flourish. The difference for someone who is striving to live in and with Christ is that they are (or should be) constantly aware of the condition of their life. Those in Christ desire to live a life that looks and behaves like the life of Jesus, and even though we might be doing an extraordinary job (though I’ve yet to be able to say that confidently about myself), we still might find some remnants of our old way of life lingering if we take the time to reflect on ourselves. This is why I think that Paul would recommend we often shake off our old selves like a pine tree losing its needles, so that we can make room for the life of Christ. And perhaps we would even do well to learn from pine trees and evaluate ourselves seasonal, setting apart a regular time of the day, week, month, or year to ask ourselves what pine needs from our old way of life might we need to drop to make room for God in our new way of life. As for me, I know I’ve got some branches that need to be cleaned of old needles, and I hope I’m not the one one.