Roots

Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:7 NLT

At some point, I took a course in college called earth science. While most of the course was unremarkable, I recall the readings and lectures about how mountains are populated with vegetation. The wind and birds play a large part. Over decades, the wind carries particles of earth that become trapped in the crevices of the mountains. The seeds for the trees are born in the bird droppings and deposited in those fertile patches. You may have noticed that often, conifer trees thrive on the mountaintops; the reason for this is they like cold climates. While they make the mountains evergreen, there is a problem we can’t see. Because of the rockiness of the soil, their root systems aren’t deep, and the foundation for any strong tree is its root system.

If you’ve ever seen a fir tree in high winds, you will notice how it bends. The tree absorbs as much as possible, but the motion above impacts the roots below. With each storm, the roots become loosened until one day, the tree can no longer stand. If you have hiked in the woods, you’ll notice the tall downed pine trees with their root system exposed and the gaping hole beneath.

The same thing happens with us. To face the strong winds of life, we need to be rooted deeply in Christ. As long as our tree lives, our root system needs to continue to grow, reaching beyond what is visible to what lies underneath. The thing that keeps us grounded is our faith in Christ. Amid the brief squalls and the hurricane winds, we needn’t fear because we are thoroughly anchored.

God, thank you for being the anchor for our roots. Help us to grow into you, letting our roots grow deep and wide so that with you, we can face any storm that comes. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Blessings,

Pastor Tim