“When the roots are deep, there’s no need to fear the wind.”
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.””
Jeremiah 17:7-8
I’ve had Multiple seasons of growth in my life that derived from some sort of suffering I brought upon myself, or some kind of hardship, but thankfully a great amount of growth also came from a full on desire and longing for the Lord as i experienced His heart for me.
I will say i was blessed to be brought up by parents who provided a Jesus loving home, and not only taught me about God’s love, but encouraged it. Fortunately, I wasn’t someone who had to find my own way, so to speak. I was so abundantly blessed to have parents that nurtured and encouraged a relationship with God from my first breath on this side of heaven. Safe to say my roots got a head start, now all I had to do was take that little sprout and not let it die…easier said than done.
Over the years, I have experienced God’s forgiveness and love endless times. I’ve experienced a fire in my bones for Him from as far back as I can remember. I can still recall this colorful zip up picture Bible my sister and I had when i was around preschool age that completely captivated me, and had me telling my parents I was ready to go to Heaven and be with Jesus!! I was sorry they weren’t ready, but they’d be fine without me! I could NOT wait! There are a lot of things that I’ve forgotten from that time, or just don’t think about much i guess, but that certainty and peace I experienced at such a young age is not one of them. It created in me then, a hunger for so much more, and while God has always remained faithful to provide it, I regretfully wasn’t always on a path to receive it. Too many times I found myself with a “new” excitement that wouldn’t be quite so fulfilling, and GOd’s peace Was anythIng but present.
Those times in my life when I left that spRout beyond parched is when i found myself buying intO the worLd and LETTING my flesh lead all my decisions. Probably one of my hardest climbs was at a time in my college years when i didN’t see my value anymore in Christ, buT in what a guy saw in me, or a group of “friends”. It became more about what i had to dress like or act like to be “wantEd”, and i was wanted. I was invited to the best parties, i had dates with some of the best looking College football And baseball players, and got free access Into clubs because of “whO” i knew. There were free drinks, skipping class to lay by the pool, sKipping Work to go to the lake, and skipping church to recover from drinking too much. I was living “the life” though, right? My social life was Filled to the brim but i couldn’t have felt more empty. Not one of those things ever gave me much more than regret, emptiness, sadness or the feeling of being totally lost. I had lost my identity in my Creator By trying to create my own. I was desperate for that peace again and only by the grace of God was there still tHat living sprout of hope, that root, that drew me back to the only One i ever found that could completely satisfy my soul.
Jesus.
Had i not had those roots established before That time, I’m afraid i would’ve been scorched and withered to nothing. our roots are not only life giving but act as our stability if you think about it. Where we grow our roots determines the root of who we are, no pun intended. Point being, Jesus is the River of Life. He can turn any soil we’ve found ourselves planted in, into the richest, purest, most hydrating form of sustenance for growth, especially “roots”, when we ask Him to. In saying that, if Jesus is our source of eternal life, then, unfortunately, anything else leads us straight to death, which is something I could live without. (I knoW) Really though, case in point, read what John says happens when we live apart from him, when we don’t abide in Him.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.” John 15:5-6
I definitely do not want that for myself…or anyone i know. Friends at some point we all carry heavy loads that we’ve either packed on our own or that’s been packed for us, but it’s not the load that breaks us down, it’s how we strain to carry it, our stubborn determination to carry it or fix it ourselves. Psalm 55:22 says, “Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.”
Jesus is that spring of living water that pours into my soul, giving it life again and again; and in turn, grows and matures those roots even deeper, as I once again dwell and find restoration in Him.
As expected, the deeper my roots grow, the more fruit I am able to see. Sometimes it’s the blessing of seeing the fruit for myself, which always humbleS me, but sometimes it’s the blessing of seeing others, or experiences, or circumstances through God’s eyes. It’s a peace that I shouldn’t have, but I totally do. then again, He is
…the.Prince.of.Peace <isaiah9:6>
It’s not an anger any longer towards a person so much as a burden for their spirit. It’s not a grip on this life as much as keeping an open hand to living in the moment, with no promise of tomorrow, but for the gift of today. It’s seeing my children not as my own, but as His…and trying to grasp the fact that He literally handpicked me to receive the greatest blessing of being their mama, for as long as He graciously allows me. It’s trying to settle my soul over and over again to just be present in the moment and remind myself to trust the Lord with every single thing in my life.
Perspective is a funny thing. Like the saying,
“Don’t let the world change your smile, let your smile change the world.”
-Or-
“If you don’t sacrifice for what you want, what you want becomes the sacrifice.”
Now, it’s just deciding what we want, and not just right now, even though that’s important, but for our familIeS and for generations to come. What roots are we establishing now to help source our future generations, in order to give them solid roots, even if they all they do is re-sprout from what you’ve already grown?
“For there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease.” Job 14:7
So we have to ask ourselves, What are we willing to sacrifice for the ones we love in order to pass on God’s strength, peace and wisdom, instead of fear and panic the world is enveloped in; to listen and love others while standing kindly for Truth. To be like Jesus. What are we teaching our children to put their hope and trust in?
I heard someone say anything that anger is trying to accomplish, love can accomplish so much better. What are we trying to accomplish? Even more what should we be trying to accomplish? What fruits do other people see in us? And where do we find our identity? Is it in the frail, immoral wavering world sooo lost in what to believe or the absolute Truth of the One that set us free?
It all sounds so deep and maybe even overwhelming but it’s really not. It’s really quite simple. If we never get rooted, we’ll never be anything more than we are right now. We won’t reach our fullest potential of who God created us to be, we won’t experience God’s greatest blessings He wants us to give us…more or less, we pass over the best He has for us.
Just like a tree that is planted by a river, we are free to choose where we’re rooted, and if we’re smart and root near the River of life, we can live a fruitful life, strong in God’s power and promises, and confident in our Creator’s love and HIS authority. We can withstand the storms and we can rest in God’s absolute truth over the world’s version of it. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow and we have access to the same God who shut the mouths of lions, who parted the Red Sea, who healed the lame and caused the blind to see. He still hears our prayers and His love for you, specifically, has no boundaries!
May this scripture be a reminder of God's love for you and motivate us all us to do a root check and start, or continue, “getting rooted” in Him…
“that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.