Rooted

We have several yucca plants in our yard. And one thing I have learned about them in the last two years is they are not very wind resistant. Twice in the last few months, our yucca plants have taken a beating from the wind. During Hurricane Hanna this past weekend, all of the branches on one of our yuccas broke off completely leaving only the base of the plant and an empty spot on the front of our house. However, another thing I have learned about yuccas is that they are rather resilient plants. As long as the roots are good, they will grow more branches filling the empty place with new growth.

Proverbs 12:3 says, “No one can be established through wickedness, but the righteous cannot be uprooted” (NIV).

Good, deep roots are necessary for plants to grow strong and healthy and be able to withstand storms. The same is true for us. We must be deeply rooted in order to not be uprooted in the midst of life’s storms. But what does this look like? What makes for good roots spiritually speaking?

Paul’s words in Ephesians 3 shed some light on this:

“I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

-Ephesians 3:16-19, NLT

We who follow Jesus are rooted in God’s love. And the longer we follow him, the deeper our roots will grow. We soak up more and more of God’s love as we spend time in his presence. We commune with him through prayer, grow through reading his Word, and transform as we love others like he loves us.

So even as the storms rage around us and the wind pushes us to our breaking point, we will not be uprooted because our roots have grown down deep and strong in God’s love. Today, let’s check the status of our roots. Are our roots firmly planted and constantly growing deeper, soaking up God’s love with every single fiber or are they crawling across the surface threatening to be uprooted with each passing wind gust?

May our roots grow deep and our love overflow.

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