Root Deep

Ephesians 3:¹⁷ “And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts, living within you as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvellous love.” (LB)

Our final thought from yesterday is that most of us want to flourish quickly, and painstakingly grow roots at the same time. But the challenge is that the two do not happen simultaneously, at least not at the same time and not at the beginning. You cannot begin to grow roots and at the same time, begin to grow fruits. You cannot do both at the same time. You have to grow roots first. In the Name of Jesus, the strength to overcome shallowness and grow roots Heaven releases to you now. 2 Kings 19:³⁰ “And the remnant who have escaped of the house of Judah Shall again take root downward, And bear fruit upward.” (NKJV). Before you can bear fruit upward, you have to take root downwards. So, you need to pay attention to your life. Are you growing roots? Are you rooted? Once you are rooted, you will be okay.

Pastor, how do I know I am rooted? I will show you, Ephesians 3:¹⁷ “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.” What keeps you strong is when your roots will grow down into God’s love. And that is what will give you strength for growth. So, how do you know when your roots are growing deeper, are you growing as a Christian, and growing in God in your personal life? You know that your roots are growing deeper when you have a greater understanding of God’s love in your life. The more your understanding of God’s love grows, the deeper your roots grow. All your spiritual roots can be measured by how deep your understanding is of the love of God.

The first growth trap is Familiarity. The second growth trap is Shallowness. And the third growth trap is Distraction. Mark 4:^18-19 “The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced.” (emphasis added). Note that the seed actually germinates and grows roots, but it is crowded out and no harvest is produced. Three things jump right at us from this passage—the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things. These things choke out growth- and choke out life.

Many people think that if they stop worrying something will go wrong. Even though they will not admit it, they believe that they need to continue to worry. That is such an arrogant position to take. It means you are saying that if you stop worrying, the universe and the world will stop. Guess what? Even your family will continue to run whether you worry or not.

Prayer: Father, rid my life completely of shallowness, distractions, and familiarity, in Jesus Name. Amen!