A Sycamore Tree, A Car Crash, And God’s Provision

In Luke 19, a short tax-collector named Zacchaeus climbed a sycamore tree to see Jesus as he passed through the crowd. He did see Jesus. Even better, Jesus saw him. Then Jesus stopped and spoke to him, and went to his home for dinner, and Zacchaeus was never the same from that day on. I’ve heard this story since I was a child, but I’d never thought too much about the sycamore tree itself until my friend Brian directed my attention to it. Did you know that sycamore trees in Israel can live for hundreds of years? And the one Zacchaeus climbed must have been fully mature if it was big enough to hold a grown man (a short man, granted) and allow him to see above other people’s heads. To be there for that particular moment of need, that tree must have been growing for decades, at least, and possibly longer. 

When we think of God’s providential provision for his children, we often think in immediate terms—the unexpected financial gift that comes on the day the bill is due, the odds-defying recovery, or the new job starting right when the severance pay ended. These kinds of immediate interventions are marvellous. They should lead us to praise and give thanks to the God who gives them. But we should also be ready to see that many of God’s provisions are prepared for us long before our needs arise. Remember, God is above time. He invented it. If he wants to, he can plant a sycamore tree in exactly the right place 100 years before the man who needs to climb it to see Jesus is even born. Is it any less miraculous if God begins his provision a century in advance? I don’t think so. And he can do the same kind of thing in our lives as well. 

My friend Brian, who pointed the sycamore tree out to me, said he started noticing “sycamore tree” provisions in his own life after his son Silas was in a terrible car crash. In the days and weeks that followed the accident, Brian and his wife Amisha started noticing that God’s provision for them often came through relationships and events that had been set in motion long before their specific needs arose. Before Silas was born, God had inspired Amisha to train as a nurse, little knowing how her degree would eventually help her own child. The nurse who had trained her later became the patient care coordinator for the entire hospital, and she was the one on duty when the accident happened, ensuring that Silas received the best possible care in the best possible time. Six months before the accident happened, Silas had started dating the granddaughter of the county commissioner. The commissioner told his friend, the CEO of the hospital, that Silas was receiving care there. The CEO came to see Silas, and Amisha was able to share one of the greatest needs of the children’s hospital with him. The CEO quickly took steps to correct the issue—steps which will help many paediatric trauma patients in the future. Later, a friend of a friend made a key phone call that helped Silas get in to the recovery programme he needed, just when he needed it. His recovery is progressing well, and in each of these cases and many more, Brian and his family saw God’s provision for their specific needs happening through means and relationships that were already in place. Like the sycamore tree was prepared in advance for Zacchaeus, God laid the groundwork to provide for my friends long before their need arose.

In Isaiah 65:24, God says, “Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.” Isn’t that encouraging? He knows our need before we do. He is already ready to provide the answer, before we even know what to ask. Ephesians 1:4 tells us that salvation itself—the greatest provision of all, for our greatest need of all—was prepared for us “before the creation of the world”. If God can work that far in advance for our deepest need of all, he can certainly have an answer ready for any other need we face. You can bring your need to him, today, however big, however small. And look around: there may already be a “sycamore tree” prepared for you. 

My friend Brian said, “God’s providence is always at work to provide for his children and to bring himself glory. If we will pay close enough attention, we will see sycamore trees all around us that will enable us to praise him in the midst of the storm.”