Tap Away and Let it Blow

(Photo credit: Blondie5000)

 Recently I overheard two women discussing their fingernails.  One was asking the other her secret for her long fingernails.  "I tap my fingernails on something hard everyday," was what she revealed.  Apparently tapping the nails regularly on a hard surface promoted a hardening of the nails, preventing them from breaking as easily.

This is confirmed by Dr. Kechijian, chief nail specialist at NYU Medical Center, who recommends that time spent in activities such as typing on the keyboard or playing the piano to strengthen and speed up nail growth. He states this type of "trauma" is actually beneficial to your nails.

I have heard a similar thing about trees.  Living in a hurricane prone area, we are often curious about the affect of strong winds on our trees.  It seems, these winds actually make the trees stronger.

Apparently several years ago researcher in Illinois placed a number of young trees in a greenhouse. One group was supported by a stake. A second group was left to grow unstaked. And a third group was left unstaked but manually waved back and forth for several minutes every day.

At the end of several months, the three groups of trees were measured for growth in height and trunk diameter. The staked trees were the tallest, but weakest (small trunk diameter), the unstaked trees were intermediate in height and trunk diameter, and many were not growing straight. The unstaked trees that were waved back and forth each day were the shortest but had the greatest trunk diameter, thus were the strongest.

The point is that sometimes the Lord knows we need the tapping and strong winds in our lives to strengthen us.  These are the events He will use. . .these winds, these taps, these tribulations to work patience in us.  That patience -- those times when we see the Lord working out His provision, His strength made perfect in our weakness, will show us experiences of His sufficiency when we trust Him, and we will know the glory of trust and hope in our Savior in every situation that faces us.  What confidence this brings.

He is trustworthy.  He has been in the past, He is in this day, and He will be in every day to come.  Let the winds blow, let our fingers tap away. . .He will cause us to weather every storm and we will find we "can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth" us.

 "And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: 

knowing that tribulation worketh patience;  

And patience, experience; and experience, hope:  

And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad 

in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us."

Romans 5:3-5