NOT ANXIOUS IN THE YEAR OF DROUGHT

" . . . But its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit  . . . " NKJV (Jeremiah 17:8)

This singular blessing is pronounced upon the man "that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is" (verse 7). This is the person whose eagle eye of faith can see beyond time and circumstance. It is the person who finds a reason to believe in the Lord, even when all around him seems to contradict it. This is the person who, like Moses, endures "as seeing him who is invisible" (Heb 11:27). His hope is in the Lord, not in his own ability, or that of his peers. He counts on the Lord coming through, not man. He depends upon Divine resources, not those of man, "whose breath is in his nostrils" (Isa 2:22). And what will be the lot of such a person? What may be expected to happen to him?
He will "be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes" (v 8a). He will remain close to the source of life, and spread his roots out by the river of the water of life, where constant nourishment will be realized. When the blast of the noonday sun falls upon this person, his resources will not dry up. Instead, he will flourish, drawing from the rich supply of the water of life, into which his roots extend.
ITS LEAF WILL BE GREEN. The person who trusts in the Lord maintains a spiritual freshness that cannot be found anywhere else. This is a vitality that cannot be emulated or pretended. It is the result of spiritual nourishment and communion with God. There is no blight upon the life, no faded spots that are uncomely. The stain of sin is not found, and the newness of life and spiritual health is evident.
NOT ANXIOUS IN DROUGHT. There are times of drought that descend upon the soul. These are times of spiritual dryness that cause extensive damage to any person whose roots do not reach into the waters of the "pure river of water of life" (Rev 22:1). They can be times of testing and trial, severe persecution, or when the Lord hides His face. But they will surely come as long as we are in this world. Their length is accentuated by the phrase "the YEAR of drought." Our text says the trusting soul will not be "anxious" in such times. Other versions say "careful," KJV "has no worries," NIV and "shall not fear." NRSV The saint will still go on bearing fruit, trusting in the Lord IN the heat of drought. Take this text and test your degree of trust.