The Tamarisk Series: Part II

Belief took a man named Abram and opened the door for him to become Abraham; believing changed him. Abram had been a drifter, a wandering man moving about from place to place, but Abraham was a rooted man; rooted in a land that would later turn into the kingdom of Judah and, with that tree, drove his stake into the ground and planted himself there just as much as he planted his tree there. He made a home, not just for himself, but for the nation that would come from him.

For us proud Americans, how did your family get here? More than likely, you are now an American because somewhere along your family line, someone paid a high price by leaving everything they knew to plant themselves in a land that would ensure a better life for their family for generations to come. You are who you are, you have what you have, because someone in your family thought generationally- because someone in your line was an Abraham.

Now I know, these kinds of investments are hard to make; no one wants to have to choose between roots or wings. But the thing of it is that wings come from roots. What gave you the strength to fly?- A strong nest, a strong home, to launch from. We think out is the only way to grow. Why not build up? Why not build upon what has already been laid out for you?

There's something to be said for the generations before us, all the way back to the early settlers, who were committed to one place. Those people had influence in their towns and held seats of position and authority. They had power and means to do amazing things because they understood that their strength didn't come from themselves alone, it came from their roots and it came from the roots of those around them who watched them grow and they the same. Never underestimate the power of being known and never underestimate the power of community; both being products of roots and commitment.

The cost of such things, well...this is the hardest thing...you have to make choices and you have to stick with them. I think this is one of the biggest steps that we can take to thinking generationally.

The term "settling down" has a negative connotation these days. We only want to "settle down" after we've accomplished everything we want to do; after we've taken hold of that career, finished that degree, seen all the places we wanted to see, "sown our wild oats". In fact, many times we are encouraged to get all such things out of our system before making lifelong decisions. We have become masters at building bridges and have lost the art of building homes. We have doctorites in the Present and, in the process, have become amateurs in History.

Yes sometimes it takes a wild and daring move, to leave all you know and plant tamarisks in a land that you must make into your home, but those aren't the only moves in the playbook. Perhaps we need to open ourselves up to that equally wild and daring move that stays and sticks with it, a move long frowned upon in the rush for independence. A move almost as foreign to us, our generation, as the places and positions we are so anxious to escape to.

This obviously cannot be a formula for all people; some will stay where they've grown up, some will move onto other towns and places and plant themselves there, others may move around like a chess piece- one strategic move at a time. The point is that, in whatever case you may be called to move, you are fully present wherever you are, committed to the land that you call home for however long you call it, bettering the land as if it were your promised land.

For some of us "puddle-hoppers" this will require some serious re-evaluation, a good hard look at what values have been driving our decisions and altering our compasses and perhaps turning in our "passports" for a while. For some this will require a re-kindling, a closer look at what has been preventing decisions and concealing compasses. And for others it will require a sharpening, going back to your tools and re-inforcing them for the work before you. For whatever is required of us, for whatever land or commitments await, I am reminded of what an old traveler once said to me, "Wherever I am is where God has placed me and that's the best place for me to be."

Be present. Be committed. Be an Abraham.