The Underground Network That Feeds Every Tree

In 1997, forest ecologist Suzanne Simard discovered something remarkable beneath the floor of a British Columbia forest. Hidden under the soil, a vast web of fungal threads — mycorrhizal networks — connected nearly every tree in the forest to every other. Nutrients, water, and chemical signals flowed freely through this underground internet. The towering Douglas firs were linked to the smallest seedlings. Ancient mother trees shared sugars with struggling saplings dozens of feet away. No tree was too young, too old, or too insignificant to be part of the network.

Before Simard's discovery, scientists assumed each tree survived on its own roots, its own effort. The truth was far more generous. The forest had always been sharing its life below the surface, invisible to anyone who only looked at what stood above ground.

Joel saw something similar when he looked ahead to God's promise. For centuries, the Spirit of the Almighty had rested on select individuals — a prophet here, a judge there, a king chosen for a season. But God declared through Joel that a day was coming when He would pour out His Spirit on all flesh. Sons and daughters. Old and young. Even servants — those the world considered least significant.

Like Simard's forest, no one would be left outside the network. The life of God would flow to every root, every branch, every unlikely seedling in the Kingdom.