Rooted

"But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." - Jeremiah 17:7-8

There's this place not far from where I live where I start to feel like I'm out of the city. That's mostly because there are finally more trees than buildings. It's beautiful and quiet (unless I decide to turn my worship music up really loud). And you're actually breathing fresh air. I love to sit by the river or go for drives there, especially in the fall.

Fall is my favorite season. I love to watch the leaves change colors. I like harvest time - well the desserts that can be made from the fall harvest anyway. I enjoy finding my way through corn mazes. That being said, when fall starts turning into winter, I hate it. The plowed up fields are no longer as enjoyable to drive by. And the trees, they look so...dead.

But they're not. The roots are still there.

No plant can grow without healthy roots. It's the roots that gather water and nutrients from the soil. It's the roots that hold strong when winds come, and it's the roots that can create new life when fire destroys the branches.

Just like the trees, we go through different seasons in life. While God certainly wants us to bear fruit, we are likely to go through seasons when growth might not be so obvious. And in those seasons especially, we need to be focusing on our roots.

Throughout Scripture, God refers to roots over and over again. In the Parable of the Sower, He talks about plants dying because the roots weren't deep enough. He says in Romans that we are supported by the root. In Hosea, He says that a withered root produces no fruit. The strength of the roots is important, and the strength of the roots is determined by where they grow.

I've had many times in my life when I felt like I was being uprooted. When I started high school and left my friends at a small private school for a large public school. When I graduated high school and moved away from my church. When some of my closest friends graduated and left at the end of my sophomore year. And again when I left college to move back home. But each of those times was a change in season, not soil.

Through all those changes, one thing has remained the same. God has been there. When things I cared about fell away, He was still there. And because of that, I have clung to Him more tightly. I've learned more about His love. I've learned more about His faithfulness. I've learned more about His peace.

In a drought, the roots of a tree reach deeper into the soil to find moisture. When we feel dry, we should also reach deeper into God's Word and presence to find Living Water. The further we press into Him, the more love we will receive. The more we rely on His love, the stronger we become. Then, even when those around us don't expect fruit, it will be there. It will be there because our roots are in the right place.

My prayer for you, reader, is the same as Paul's prayer was for the Ephesians.

"I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord's holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." (emphasis mine)

Join the conversation: Where are your roots? When trouble comes, are you afraid, or do you know that God is taking care of you? What can you do to let your roots grow deeper in His Love?