The Alamo Oak

Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved! You brought a vine out of Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it. You cleared the ground for it; it took deep root and filled the land. The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. It sent out its branches to the sea and its shoots to the River. (Psalm 80:7-11 ESV).

The Live Oak at the Alamo ranks as the most popular tree at the Shrine of Texas Liberty. The mammoth specimen anchors the Convento Courtyard and sits next to an abandoned well. Tucked behind the north barracks wall, it exhibits classic Live Oak form: stout trunk and draping branches that bow to the ground, then reach like fingers from the earth. In 1912, Walter Whall carefully removed the earth from the roots of a 40-year-old Live Oak. He hauled it to the Alamo on a cart pulled by four mules. He then transplanted it into the Convento Courtyard where it thrives today. The reason he transplanted the tree was first a marketing ploy. No one had ever successfully transplanted a tree of this size. He set out to prove all the experts wrong. And, he did just that. Our reading today tells of a transplanted “vine from Egypt.” The Lord God transplanted this vine with tender, loving care. The Lord protected it with shade and walls, and “it took root and filled the land.” This vine is a picture of Israel, God’s people, flourishing. If you are a believer, you are a product of this transplant. Ultimately our eternal life is a result of this work of God. My roots go deeply into the soil of another country, Sicily. My grandparents immigrated more than 100 years ago. For the first couple of generations my extended family remained planted in their faith and flourished. Over time, family ties and connections to the immigrant community loosened. In some ways this has been good, though I am thrilled now to see some of those relationships rekindled and growing. Tragically that is not the case with God’s people. Connections with God and God’s people have weakened or been severed for some, and the family tree has weakened. The words of our text reading are nestled in lament. Some¬thing has gone wrong with the vine. God’s people are in anguish, struggling outside of his favor and needing to repent. We need the kind of revival that will help us to awaken from the division and strife we have drifted into. It starts with each of us individually. Let your roots go deeper into the life Christ has won for us!