No one seems to know the tree’s key to survival. You can find the Bahrain Tree of Life in the Arabian Desert, which sees little to no annual rainfall. Some claim the Bahrain tree is the one mentioned in the Garden of Eden, although that’s hard to reconcile with the surrounding desert. Despite the confusing address of “Dirt Road to Tree of Life, Jebel Dukhan, Bahrain,” sixty-five thousand people visit yearly. Perhaps the number of tourists explains the periodic presence of an ice cream truck.

The tree is thirty-two feet tall and still expanding. Scientists calculate the evergreen is over four hundred years old, but they haven’t explained how it can grow without a source of fresh water. Some speculate the roots, which exceed one hundred sixty-four feet in length, have tapped into an as-yet-undiscovered underground water supply.

Visiting the Ancient Tree

I struggled to stand in what felt like a convection oven—112 degrees Fahrenheit with a twenty-mile-per-hour wind. The soft ground and howling wind meant I had as much sand in my sandals as beneath them. Those conditions were definitely not conducive to a long, leisurely visit. So, what is the Tree of Life’s key to survival in that hostile environment?

The Key to Survival in Unfriendly Conditions

Sometimes, we ask about the key to survival for persecuted Christians. How can they remain faithful? Many live in countries no more welcoming than the desert. How can their faith flourish in a culture that denigrates or even forbids Christianity? How can ours? The Bahrain Tree of Life points us in the right direction.

As believers, we possess the key to survival—an invisible water supply, the one Jesus promised. “Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them” (John 7:38). Christians who live in countries where Christianity is countercultural and costly must find nonverbal ways of sharing their faith. Jesus’ declaration that his followers are salt and light in a hungry and dark world reveals the way (Matthew 5:13, 14). Even in places with more freedom, nothing speaks louder than our actions. We can do what Jesus calls us to do because he gives us what we need—the strength and power of his Spirit. The only contribution he asks from us is obedience.

How will you live out your faith today?

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