I grew up in Hawaii, where I canoed in the sparkling waters, hung my laundry in the sun and plucked ripe avocadoes. Being close to nature was like food for my soul. So I was thrilled to discover my new husband Werner\u2019s house in California had a backyard full of birds, butterflies and trees\u2014including our very own lemon tree! I imagined us picking and cooking with its juicy fruit, and taking shade under its leafy limbs.<\/p>\n
Then I went to take a closer look at the tree. What a mess! The branches were twisted and tangled and sagged so low to the ground that no sunlight broke through. It sat surrounded by patches of dirt. Steel rods and cords had been used at some point to hold up the branches, but now the cords were embedded in the bark and strangling the tree. The leaves were bug-infested. Oh, and the lemons? Most of them were deformed or rotten.<\/p>\n
\u201cHoney, I\u2019ve tried to help that tree, but I think it might be a lost cause,\u201d said Werner. Yet somehow I felt called to save the lemon tree. Maybe that\u2019s because there was a time when I was a lost cause too.<\/p>\n
Seven years earlier my first marriage ended and I moved from Hawaii to southern California. I stayed with friends and started my own business\u2014a Polynesian entertainment company. We performed Hawaiian hula dances at Hollywood events. I loved all the attention we got\u2014especially from men. I longed to find love again, and I decided I didn\u2019t need God\u2019s help. I had my dat\u00ading life under control.<\/p>\n
Only I didn\u2019t. I dated all the wrong guys. Desperate to find true love, I signed up for an online matchmaking service. That\u2019s where I found Werner and we set up a date\u2026but I canceled on him because the night before I\u2019d gone to dinner with a guy I was sure was Mr. Right. Turns out he was Mr. Not Even Close. One night I found myself praying, God, I was so wrong. I need you.<\/em> I swore off dating. I decided it would be just God and me for a while.<\/p>\n A few weeks later a message popped up in my inbox. \u201cWishing you a Happy Thanksgiving. Fondly, Werner.\u201d I felt my face flush. Werner had been so gracious when I canceled on him at the last minute. I wanted to see him, but I couldn\u2019t bring myself to date again. No way. Still, that night I prayed about it.<\/p>\n I woke the next morning to a voice that was loud and clear. \u201cRespond to him,\u201d it said. Deep in my heart I knew that God had sent Werner to me. I replied to his e-mail. Soon we met in person and fell in love, and within six months we were married.<\/p>\n I felt healthy and whole\u2014and incredibly blessed. God had given me a second chance. Couldn\u2019t I do the same for one of his creations?<\/p>\n So I began to work on the lemon tree. A little at a time so it wouldn\u2019t go into shock. One by one I trimmed the heavy-laden branches. As they fell to the ground, they reminded me of all the bad choices I\u2019d made in the past falling away. Later I released some of the cords. I couldn\u2019t help but think about how I\u2019d been released from being so foolish and freed to reconnect with God.<\/p>\n One day I laid my hands on the tree and said a little prayer. Lord, this lemon tree is a lot like how I used to be\u2014it\u2019s damaged and hopeless and needs lots of love. Please help me bring it back to life.<\/p>\n A few months later I noticed something: New fruit had grown in and this time all of the lemons were whole and healthy. The branches had opened up, letting sunlight through.<\/p>\n Today, seven years after I first saw that sad, mangled lemon tree, it stands tall and magnificent. It grows juicy yellow lemons that Werner and I cook with and put in gift baskets for neighbors and friends (pickled lemons are the biggest hit). And its strong limbs are covered with shiny green leaves, perfect for taking shade under.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t believe how far that tree has come!\u201d Werner marvels. \u201cYou did an amazing job.\u201d<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t just me. The lemon tree and I are living proof that anything can grow and blossom in the hands of the One who nurtures us all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I grew up in Hawaii, where I canoed in the sparkling waters, hung my laundry in the sun and plucked ripe avocadoes. Being close to nature was like food for my soul. So I was thrilled to discover my new husband Werner\u2019s house in California had a backyard full of birds, butterflies and trees\u2014including our […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30235,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":false,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"","_twitter_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type":"","_pinterest_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"","_medium_share_type":"","_threads_share_type":"","_google_business_share_type":"","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[136],"tags":[62,182,51,72,80],"ppma_author":[726],"class_list":["post-23193","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-positive-living","tag-blessings","tag-gardening","tag-inspirational-stories","tag-stories-of-faith","tag-stories-of-hope"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n