Dear Ones,
Hope you had an enjoyable weekend. We have had a great time at Mark’s, enjoying family time together. We  played many games with our grandsons and loved having a campfire down by the stream, watching a good movie, eating lots of good food etc. Today we went to their church and heard a great sermon and then out to an Asian restaurant to eat. Tomorrow we start our trip homeward and plan to take our time. We appreciate prayers again for our safety.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
We are in uncertain times and need to be deeply rooted in the Lord to be able to stand firm in the days ahead. But that is not a cause to fear but rather to keep our eyes on the Lord and walk closely with Him. When the winds of adversity come, our roots need to be buried deep so we don’t get overcome and fall. 
When we were at Mark’s house in N.C., we were in ah of all the beautiful trees on their property that they just acquired. They had a landscaper come out to help them with their 5 acres of woods, and he gave them the good news that they have a couple trees on their land that are extremely old, like over 400 years old. He said that any time they wanted to sell the wood they would get a very good price as the wood is very valuable. Think of the root system those trees must have to have withstood all the elements for all these years and are still vibrant with green leaves.
There are more than 36 trees mentioned in the Bible and they were used for various purposes. We read of familiar ones like oak trees or olive trees, or the mention of the acacia tree of which the Ark was made from. God also used the sound in the top of the Balsam trees to let David know it was time that he was to attack the Philistines. We read the description from Psalm 1 of the blessed person who finds his delight in the Lord and it says in verse 3, “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.”
What about us? Do we want to be like those trees along the stream that remain strong even into our old age? If so, we must let our roots go deep into the Lord and spend time in His word and get our daily instruction from Him. We can also memorize His Word and hide it in our hearts so it is available to us even in the stormy times. It is the Holy Spirit that helps us recall just the right verse to fit a need we may have at the exact moment. If we store up spiritual food in the good times we can go through the dry times, without drying up and withering.
Challenge for today: Spend time drinking deeply of the Word.
Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy