Life Cycle Of A Giant

They took the sign down, and replaced it. Now it just reads, “Klootchy Creek County Park”. The old sign read, “Largest Sitka Spruce Tree in United States”. I can remember the first time I saw the tree, with Paul and Milt, on a trip to Canon Beach for a camping conference. We were awe struck. It was 17 feet in diameter, and 56 feet in circumference. It stood 200 feet tall. It was the largest tree in Oregon, and considered to be the oldest living organism in the entire state, of any kind, nearly 700 years old.

December 2, 2007. Hurricane force winds swept up the Oregon Coast and came inland near Seaside. Large swaths of trees were blown down, like toothpicks. Millions of board feet of timber. That wind storm brought down the top of that Giant Sitka Spruce, leaving only the base of the tree, 80 feet tall. It was sad. So much so that reporters on the TV news were choking up with tears.

If you were to pull into Klootchy Creek County Park today you would find a display sign which is now titled, “Life Cycle of a Giant.” It describes the time when the tree sprouted from the ground before Columbus discovered America. By the time it was 200 years old it had reached its height of 200 feet and would spend the rest of its life “bulking up”. Now that it is toppled it will stay in place as a nurse log to encourage native habitat and new trees to grow. The life cycle of that giant carries on to sustain the next generations.

Two times I have stopped to look at that tree, what’s left of it, and I still marvel at it. It reminded me, this last time, of one of my heroes of the faith, Samson. He was a giant in the early years of Israel. He was a judge, a warrior, a deliverer. He kept the Philistines at bay, and kept the Israelites safe. His birth was pretty special, too. An angel told his mother that she would give birth to this son. The angel told the parents that he should drink no wine, eat no unclean food, and never cut his hair. Samson observed that Nazarite vow faithfully throughout his life, one of only three men we know of who did so. He was pretty unconventional, it can go without saying, but he fulfilled God’s calling, with God’s blessing and anointing upon him. He must have been quite a guy, bulked up, with arms and legs of steel, and braids of hair down his back. I would have loved to hang around with him. And then there were the many times when the Spirit of God stirred in him, and anointed him with power. Wow! What a giant!

But the hurricane wind came through and toppled the giant. Her name was Delilah. But an amazing part of that story is often missed. The historian’s account of Samson’s life ends at the close of Judges chapter 15. The account of succumbing to Delilah, and of his eyes being gouged out, is an addendum. It is his own story, a self-disclosure. After three years in a Philistine prison his hair grew back. God wasn’t obligated to renew his part of the vow, but he did. That’s grace. Samson was a giant of faith, and God anointed him again. And he took 3000 God-mocking Philistines to their grave in his last epoch act as deliverer.

Samson’s personal testimony of his folly, his shame, his pain, and his restoration is an integral part of his grand story of faith. He trusted God, and God loved him. I have heard Bible teachers say, “The only reason that Samson’s story is in the Bible is to teach us how we should not live.” One time I wanted to stand up and scream, “No, no, no! His story is a story of faith!” It is an epic story of one of the great giants of faith.

That Bible teacher I wanted to scream at is typical of modern day “Pharisees”, who want to control people’s behavior by fear and guilt. They think that it’s more effective to coerce obedience than to teach how to walk in faith, in trust, and in grace. They presume that righteousness can be mustered up by self effort, rather than coming through the redemption of Jesus – always and only. Only those few “teachers” really think they can be perfect enough to make themselves pleasing to God, but sadly they lead so many more down the broad road of self-righteousness. Most of us, though, know we are more like Samson and need to be taught how to live in faith so that we can know God’s love, forgiveness, and repentance. Only his love can change us. Yes Samson failed. Miserably. But in his blindness he believed God. Anew, and deeper. That’s why he is a giant of faith, whose weakness was turned to strength (Hebrew 11:32-34). Never trust anyone who does not walk with a limp.

The life cycle of this giant, Samson, nurtures generations upon generations, for all who would understand faith. God doesn’t want us to be perfect. That’s impossible, anyways. He wants us to be real, honest, and humble. The opposite of sin is not virtue, but rather faith. To me, Samson’s faith is as thrilling to look at as that giant Sitka Spruce tree, what’s left of it.