I was watching a show about Yosemite on National Geographic channel the other night. When it came to the topic of the Sequoia redwoods I learned something that I did not know. The Sequoia redwoods depend on forest fires to reproduce. It was explained that the seedpods on the Sequoia Redwood require a high temperature to release the seeds and the only way naturally that they are released is to experience fire. They even found that man's effort to reduce and control forest fires was actually causing the Sequoia redwoods to become endangered. Of course my mind went straight to the fiery trials that we all experience.
I was also struck by the fact that now rather than trying to extinguish the fires they manage the fires trying to get the most good out of them to ensure the health of the trees.
So obviously my hope is to see the connection that not all fires are bad things, not all trials are bad things, God can accomplish good through the fires and trials.
