Pastor's Note - Spring 2022
Spring and the Sugar Maple
by Pastor Rick
“… the trees of the Lord are full of sap …”
(Psalm 104:16)
"…rooted and built up in Christ and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.”
(Colossians 2:7)
As a boy growing up in Michigan, the months of February and March were dreary, boring, cold and muddy. It was too early to play baseball and too late to ice skate. Oh how I longed for spring to arrive when I could play outside!
Almost 15 years ago, I had a lunch appointment with my friend, Rev. Larry Smoose who was then pastor of Reformation Lutheran Church in Media. “Before we go” he said, “I need to check my sap. It’s boiling in the church kitchen.” “What?” I said, “Where are these trees?” He led me to a small grove of eight sugar maple trees in the backyard of the church. He showed me the tree taps, the sap buckets, and explained to me how it all worked. “I’m doing that!” I said to myself.
Larry gave me the website address of a company in New Hampshire where I could order a “starter kit.” Five days later, I tapped my first tree – a silver maple in my backyard. It yielded 25 gallons of sap which I boiled down to 3 pints of maple syrup. I was hooked! And I have been “playing outside” every winter and early spring since that day – discovering the wonder of God’s creation.
Every year in the Northern Hemisphere -- as winter gives birth to spring with longer days and warmer temperatures – a miracle takes place in the maple trees. It begins deep in the soil where the tree roots draw up water in the form of sap. The sap flows through a portion of the outer tree trunk called “sapwood.” When the tree is tapped by a maple syrup producer, the pressure forces the sap out of the tree into the bucket. Only after the temperature rises above freezing during the day does the sap begin to flow. This cycle of warm and cool weather is essential to the process. The sugar in maple sap is a by-product of photosynthesis which occurs during the summer when carbohydrates turn into sucrose (sugar) and dissolves in the sap. Amino acids in the sap give the maple syrup its unique flavor and color – making it a breakfast favorite around the world!
Just as God has filled the maple trees with sap, so our lives can produce His fruit, by the working of the Holy Spirit, when we are “… rooted and built up in Christ and established in the faith…” (Colossians 2:7).
Today, in a world of trouble, our family and friends need the “sweet sap” of Jesus. They need His Truth and they need His mercy, grace and love. And no matter what the news brings in the days ahead, we can “abound in thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:7) to our Creator and Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
