Deeply Rooted

Years ago I lived on a two-acre country property that boasted some beautiful perennial flower gardens. I loved working in those gardens.

Every spring I would eagerly await the first plants to poke through the soil and as I’d watch them all grow I’d get fresh ideas for all the ways I could make my gardens look better.

I would move plants—one from here to fill in a space over there. A piece from this one to put next to that one. For days, I’d move the plants to improve the overall aesthetic of my vision.

However, as the growing season progressed, it wouldn’t be long before I would begin to notice some distinctions—some big differences between the plants I had moved and those I had left alone. 

And it had everything to do with their roots. 

You see, the ones that blossomed and bloomed and flourished were the ones I had left in place … the ones with deeper roots.

But the opposite was true of the others. The plants I had moved were not well-rooted. Their roots were shallow at best and it showed in their lack of flourishing. They weren’t thriving or reaching their full potential because a plant’s only chance to not just survive but thrive is through its roots.

It’s through a plant’s roots that it absorbs the water it needs to keep growing.

In its roots, it stores nutrients to help it flourish and bear fruit.

Without deep roots it will not be stable nor will it be strong. 

Ultimately, a plant will not be able to fulfill the purpose it was meant to fulfill, it will not be able to bear the fruit it is intended to bear, unless it is permanently planted in a place where it can grow deep roots.

Did you know that God says the same thing about us and our life roots?

To wholly live the life God says we were meant to live—a purpose-filled, fruitful life He has designed us for—our life roots must be planted in a place where they can grow deep.

And for our life roots to grow deep they need to be purposefully and permanently planted in the right place.

• Planted in a place where they will receive the water they need.

• Planted in a place where they will receive the right nourishment to grow.

• Planted in a place that will provide stability and strength.

The place we plant them to acquire all that and to grow a fruitful, flourishing life is in the One who is and speaks the Words of life–Christ, the Living Word.)

In other words, a thriving, flourishing life comes from growing a deeply rooted life in Christ.

Over and over again Scripture paints this picture for us—how that growing our roots deep into Christ and the Word of God is essential to cultivating the life that God designed and desires us to live.

One of those pictures is found in Psalm 1 where the psalmist depicts for us, using the image of a tree, the one who experiences true blessedness, authentic happiness, and a healthy, fruit-bearing spiritual life.

Read verse 3:

“He is like a tree planted beside flowing streams

that bears its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.”

If you and I want to grow a flourishing, God-glorifying life, if we want to bear fruit and prosper in the things God has for us to do, we have to be like this tree.

And to become like it, the psalm identifies a couple of required intentional actions.

The first action is "a turning away.” As verse 1 of the psalm says, a turning away from the advice of the wicked, the way of sinners and the company of mockers. A turning away from the world and all that is false in it. 

You will never hear how to cultivate and grow a flourishing life by listening to what the world has to say.

Our culture says the way to a prosperous life is through following your heart, being famous, climbing the ladder, making money or having a host of followers … all while looking great. That’s not what the Bible says.

It says, if we want a thriving, flourishing life like the tree in Psalm 1 we not only have to turn away from the world but we have to turn toward something.

We have to turn toward the Word of God. Toward the Lord’s instruction. And that “turning toward” is captured in the word “delight” in verse 2 of the psalm that says:

“His [or her] delight is in the Lord’s instruction.”

This word delight comes from a Hebrew word that means to delight in but also includes the deeper meaning to strongly desire, to incline to, to bend or lean toward.

To delight in the Word of God in this way means to put our roots into it intentionally, not as an occasional activity, but regularly, making it a priority. 

It means to leave our roots planted in the fresh, flowing stream of the Word and anchor them in the One who is the Word. They have everything our roots need to grow deeply and to develop fruit progressively in our lives.

So, how are we doing prioritizing the roots of our lives? Are we planting them where we might be strengthened, sustained and stabilized? Sinking them into the One who grows and transforms us to become women who glorify God with our whole lives?

Christ alone has that power. His Word is the source of our flourishing. It is the sustenance we need to thrive. So, let’s sink our life roots deep into them. They hold all we need to live the abundant life Jesus came to provide for us.