Today as I was pushing Rachel on the swing on the playground, I noticed that our thorn tree had a new shoot of growth. It got me to thinking a bit...and I was amazed at the things I knew about this tree, and it's "fruit". First, the thorns can puncture any variety of things: bicycle tires, balls, flip flops (and therefore feet!) and even car tires. Now, from a distance, they don't look that intimidating. A bit spikey maybe. When they are green, and slightly more pliable they don't seem as fierce. But when the rains stop, they begin to dry up and harden. They can even be deadly. (ie: don't hide under a thorn tree during a wind or rainstorm, as a branch could break off...you get the picture) They are also nourishing. Yes, nourishing. The camels like to partake in the leaves of this tree. They are the tiny things between the thorns--look closely, they are there. The camels must have amazing mouths to withstand the thorns to get to the leaves. As I thought of camels eating these, and how the thorns should pierce their mouths, it made me wonder if this is what Jesus' crown of thorns was like. I put my hand next to one of the thorns so you could see how big it is, but then again I have fairly large hands. They measure approximately 3 inches (8 cm) in length! I shudder to imagine a crown of thorns like this. I am sure that there was little care taken when thrusting the crown onto Jesus' head. It gives new light to the suffering that he endured for us...and this was only a tiny portion of what Jesus went through for us. Though these thoughts might be better received around Easter, when thoughts normally turn to Jesus' suffering and death on our behalf, I thought I'd share them with you today anyway.
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