Flourishing & Bearing Fruit

I love palm trees. There is just something about seeing a row of palm trees against a beautiful blue sky that immediately makes me think of the beach, warm sunshine, ocean breezes, and vacation. Maybe that is one reason Psalm 92:12–15 caught my attention:

What a beautiful picture of the life of someone who is planted in God. But living in Texas makes me look at palm trees a little differently. Our summers can be brutally hot, but our winters can occasionally bring freezing temperatures. Every time I see someone plant a beautiful palm tree around here, part of me wonders, Will that palm tree survive when winter comes? It may look wonderful during the summer. It may thrive when the sun is shining and the temperatures are warm. But what happens when the freeze comes?

As I thought about that, I realized that might be a pretty good question to ask about ourselves. It is relatively easy to feel strong in our faith when life feels like a sunny day at the beach. The family is doing well, the bills are paid, our prayers seem to be answered, and our plans are working. We feel productive, useful, and hopeful.

But life has seasons, and eventually winter comes. There are disappointments, losses, illnesses, financial struggles, broken relationships, and changes we never asked for. There are prayers that seem to go unanswered. There are also seasons when we simply realize that life is changing. Our children grow up, our roles change, our bodies change, and the things God asks us to do in one season may not be the things He asks us to do in the next.

That is why I love the promise found in Psalm 92:14: “They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green.” God doesn't say His people have an expiration date. He doesn't say we flourish until a certain birthday or that we can only bear fruit when we are young, energetic, successful, or living in ideal circumstances. Instead, He gives us this beautiful picture of people who continue to flourish because they are planted in Him.

Planted in the House of the Lord

I think the word “planted” may be one of the most important words in this passage. A healthy plant doesn't occasionally visit the soil. Its roots live there. They reach deeply into the ground, receive nourishment from it, and depend upon it for life.

Psalm 92 says that God's people are “planted in the house of the Lord.” Our faith isn't supposed to be something we pick up occasionally when life becomes difficult. Our roots are meant to grow deeply into God's truth. We become planted in His Word, planted in prayer, planted in worship, planted in fellowship with His people, and planted in His presence.

When our roots are deep, changing weather doesn't have to determine the condition of our souls. The season around us may change, but the One we are rooted in does not.

Palm Trees in God's House

Interestingly, palm trees appear in another place connected with the house of God. When Solomon built the Temple, 1 Kings 6:29–35 tells us that palm trees were carved into its walls and doors along with cherubim and flowers. Imagine walking into that magnificent Temple and seeing those palm trees carved throughout the surroundings.

Then think again about the words of Psalm 92: “The righteous will flourish like a palm tree…planted in the house of the Lord.” I love that connection. The palm wasn't merely a picture of tropical beauty. Throughout Scripture, we repeatedly see palm branches connected with celebration, worship, and victory.

In Leviticus 23:39–40, when God instructed His people concerning the Feast of Tabernacles, palm branches were among the branches they were told to gather as they celebrated before the Lord. It was a time of remembering God's provision and rejoicing in His goodness. The palm branches became part of their celebration and worship.

Centuries later, palm branches appear again when Jesus enters Jerusalem. John 12:13 tells us that the people took palm branches and went out to meet Him, crying, “Hosanna!” and welcoming Him as the King of Israel. The palm branches were lifted in celebration as Jesus entered the city.

And then we find palm branches one more time, all the way in the final book of the Bible. Revelation 7:9 gives us a glimpse of a great multitude standing before the throne of God and before the Lamb. They come from every nation, tribe, people, and language. They are dressed in white robes, and they are holding palm branches in their hands as they praise God and proclaim His victory.

Think about that for a moment. We see palms in the celebration of God's provision in Leviticus, carved into Solomon's Temple, waved as Jesus enters Jerusalem, and held by God's people before His throne in Revelation. Again and again, palms appear in scenes of worship, celebration, and victory.

And right in the middle of this beautiful biblical picture, Psalm 92 tells us that ‘we are to flourish like a palm tree.’

Maybe being a “palm tree person” means that our lives become an act of worship too.

I Want to Be a Palm Tree Person

The more I think about Psalm 92, the more I find myself saying, “Lord, make me a palm tree person.” I want to be deeply rooted in God's truth. I want to keep growing when life is good and when life is difficult. I want to flourish because of where I am planted, not because of the weather surrounding me.

I want to continue producing fruit for God's Kingdom for as many years as He gives me. I want to stay spiritually fresh and green. Most of all, I want my life to do exactly what Psalm 92:15 says: proclaim that the Lord is upright and that He is my Rock.

Maybe that is some of the greatest fruit we can ever produce—our testimony. Our lives can say, God has been faithful. He was faithful when we were young. He was faithful while we were raising our families. He was faithful during the victories, and He was faithful during the heartbreak. He was faithful when our prayers were answered exactly as we hoped, and He was still faithful when the answer looked nothing like we expected.

Year after year and season after season, our lives can become living memorials of His grace, hope, healing, faithfulness, and love.

Still Bearing Fruit

Perhaps you have reached a season of life when you have wondered, Am I too old to start something new? Does God still have something for me to do? Are my most fruitful years behind me?

Psalm 92 gives us such a beautiful answer: “They will still bear fruit in old age.”

There is no retirement age for being fruitful in God's Kingdom. The fruit may simply look different in different seasons. Maybe once you served God in ways everyone could see, while today your fruit looks like encouraging a younger woman, praying faithfully for your grandchildren, making a meal for someone who is struggling, sending an encouraging card, teaching someone what God has taught you, or sharing your testimony.

Maybe your fruit is creating something beautiful that points another person toward Jesus. Maybe it is opening your Bible with a friend. Maybe it is simply being the woman who has walked with God long enough to say with confidence, “I have lived long enough to know that He is faithful.”

That is fruit. Beautiful, lasting fruit.

And I think there is something especially precious about fruit that comes from a life that has weathered a few storms. Anyone can praise God when the sun is shining. But there is something powerful about the testimony of a woman who has walked through some winters and can still raise her hands and say, “God has been good to me.”

What Kind of Palm Tree Am I Becoming?

So the next time I see a palm tree—especially one growing here in Texas—I'm going to think about more than sunshine, beaches, and vacations. I'm going to remember Psalm 92.

I'm going to ask myself where my roots are growing. Am I allowing God to grow me in this season? What kind of fruit is my life producing? Does my life point people toward Jesus? Am I using the story God has given me to tell the next generation about His faithfulness?

Because I don't simply want to survive the changing seasons of life. I want to flourish. I want to be fruitful. I want to remain fresh and green. And whether I'm standing in sunshine or weathering a Texas freeze, I want my life to continually declare, “The Lord is upright; He is my Rock.”

Bible Journaling

For your Bible Journaling page, create a palm tree beside Psalm 92:12–15 and use the roots as an important part of the design. Along the trunk or around the tree, you could add the words ROOTED • GROWING • FLOURISHING • FRUITFUL. In and around the palm branches.

Then add a word strip somewhere on your page that says:

STILL BEARING FRUIT

As you create, spend some time thinking about the season of life you're in right now. Maybe you're in a beautiful summer season where everything seems to be growing. Maybe you're in a season of change. Or perhaps it feels like winter has arrived and you're wondering what God could possibly grow from this season.

Write this prayer somewhere in your journal and finish the sentence in your own words:

“Lord, in this season of my life, help me bear fruit by…”

If you’d like to see how I created my Psalm 92:12–15 mixed-media Bible Journaling page, I’d love for you to join me over on YouTube! In the video, I’ll walk you through the creative process step-by-step as we add layers, texture, and meaningful elements inspired by the words “flourish like a palm tree” and “still bearing fruit.” Grab your Bible and a few of your favorite craft supplies and come create with me!

A Few Questions to Think About

As you work on your Bible Journaling page, think about what it means for you personally to be “planted in the house of the Lord.” What has God used throughout your life to deepen your roots? What kind of spiritual fruit is He producing in you right now? How can your story show someone else that God is faithful?

And maybe the most important question is this: What is one way I can intentionally bear fruit in the season I'm in today?

Prayer

Father, thank You that my usefulness in Your Kingdom is not determined by my age or by the season I am walking through. Plant me deeply in Your truth and strengthen my roots so that I will remain faithful when circumstances change. Help me continue growing, flourishing, and bearing fruit for You.

May my words, my creativity, my service, and my story point others toward Jesus. Use every season of my life—the beautiful ones and the difficult ones—to deepen my roots and strengthen my testimony. And when others look at my life, may they see a living testimony that declares, “The Lord is faithful. He is my Rock.” Amen.