As Kris and Kell were leaving the Ark Encounter in Kentucky, a taxicab came screeching up to the curb and a special messenger got out and handed them an envelope! Kell was so anxious to find out where they were going next, that she snatched the envelope out of the messenger’s hand and tore it open!
The instructions said to drive to the airport and there were plane tickets to go to New Orleans, Louisiana! When they got to New Orleans, and got off the plane, there was a person holding up a sign with their name on it. The person handed them the keys to a rental car and then walked away. Kris called after them, “Where are we supposed to go in the rental car?” The person did not answer Kris and kept walking away.
Kris and Kell did not know what to do! They had a car reserved for them, but they did not know where they were supposed to go! It was very confusing! Kell got out her phone and called Misadventures…Plus to ask them what they were supposed to do, but the person who answered the phones just told them to have trust and follow the directions. That did not make any sense because they did not have any directions!
Kell said that she was hungry, so they decided to find their rental car and go to eat. When they got in the car, there was a note on the steering wheel that said, “Find the Tree of Life”.
The note did not make any sense! Kris and Kell knew that the Tree of Life had been with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden at the very beginning of the creation of this world. That was a long time ago, on the other side of the world, and before Noah’s Flood that destroyed the whole world! How were they supposed to find the Tree of Life?
While they were eating, Kell had an idea. She said, “Maybe there is a Church or some kind of organization that is called The Tree of Life”. This was a great idea, so Kris googled ‘The Tree of Life – Louisiana’ on his phone. He immediately got a response that was surprising! The Tree of Life in New Orleans, Louisiana was an actual tree! The tree is a Live Oak tree that is growing in Audubon Park in New Orleans. Live Oak trees are different from regular oak trees because Live Oak trees never lose their leaves. The leaves of the tree stay green all year and do not fall off the tree until new leaves push the old leaves off the branches. These trees do not ‘go to sleep’ or become dormant in the winter like other oak trees do, they are ‘alive’ all the time!
This Live Oak tree is about 60 feet tall and is about 35 feet around at the base. The popular legend about this tree is that it was planted by the first mayor of New Orleans, Étienne de Boré in 1771 as a wedding present to his wife. However, this is probably a false legend because most believe that the tree was planted 31 years earlier in 1740.
Today the Tree of Life in New Orleans is a popular place for weddings to take place. In fact, there was a wedding taking place at the Tree of Life when Kris and Kell arrived. They did not want to interrupt the wedding, so they quietly waited at the back of the crowd until the wedding finished. Unfortunately, Kris was standing by a woman who was wearing a lot of perfume, the smell was overwhelming! Kris felt like he was going to sneeze, and he tried to hold it in, but he could not stop that sneeze from coming out! Just as the wedding finished, the sneeze exploded from Kris and Kell jumped back in fright! Kell stumbled, bumped into a table, and fell. The wedding cake was on the table, and it slid to the edge and fell right on top of Kell’s head!
People rushed to Kell to help her and to try to save some of the wedding cake! At first the bride looked angry, but then she saw how ridiculous Kell looked with the cake on her head, and the bride began laughing! Everyone was laughing so hard they could hardly stand up! It was truly a wedding that none of them would forget!
The bride and groom helped to get Kell cleaned up a bit and then they invited to Kris and Kell to stay and enjoy the meal with them. Afterwards, Kris and Kell had a chance to admire the Tree of Life. It was truly an awesome tree, and they were glad that they had had a chance to see it!
Lesson Learned about God:
The original Tree of Life was in the Garden of Eden. After Adam and Eve sinned, God kicked them out of the Garden of Eden so that they could not eat from the Tree of Life and live forever in their sins.
In the Bible Genesis 3:22-24 God said this after Adam & Eve sinned:
Then the Lord God said, “Look, the human beings have become like us, knowing both good and evil. What if they reach out, take fruit from the tree of life, and eat it? Then they will live forever!” So the Lord God banished them from the Garden of Eden, and He sent Adam out to cultivate the ground from which he had been made. After sending them out, the Lord God stationed mighty cherubim to the east of the Garden of Eden. And He placed a flaming sword that flashed back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.
Jesus is the Son of God who came to earth as a human and yet was still God. He lived a perfect life and died on the cross to pay for the sins of the entire world and then was raised from the dead three days later. When a person truly believes in Jesus and prays and asks Him to forgive them and come into their life and take control, they become a Believer (also known as a Christian), and God writes their name in His Book of Life. When a Believer reaches the end of their life here on this earth and physically die, they go to heaven to be with Jesus for eternity!
In heaven there is no more sin, death, or pain, and the true Tree of Life is there too. Believers will live forever! This is an awesome thing to look forward to, but only Believers in Jesus will get to experience this. People who refuse to believe in Jesus and give their life to Him will be lost forever and go to a place of torture called the lake of fire (also known as hell).
In the Bible in Revelation 20:11-15 it says:
And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from His presence, but they found no place to hide. I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. The sea gave up its dead, and death and the grave gave up their dead. And all were judged according to their deeds. Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.
In the Bible in Revelation 21:27 thru Revelation 22:5 a brief description is given of the city in the new heaven that will be for the Believers. It says:
Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty – but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations. No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and His servants will worship him. And they will see His face, and His name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there – no need for lamps or sun – for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.
Please make the choice to give your life to Jesus today!
Report to the grandmother:
- At the travel agency – God has a good plan for us. Jeremiah 29:11
- Florida – God is watching over us, we do not need to be fearful. Psalms 23
- Wisconsin – Temptations. I Corinthians 10:13, Proverbs 14:12, I John 1:9
- Minnesota – Never take your eyes off Jesus. Matthew 14:22-33
- Kentucky – God’s Word (the Bible) is the truth! John 17:17
- Louisiana – Choose Heaven and the Tree of Life. Revelation 20:11-15, Revelation 21:27 thru 22:5