DEEPEN OUR ROOTS

(A SEASON OF NEW GROWTH #7)
Monday, June 14th

I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. (Ephesians 3:16-17 NRSV)

As we continue our Season of New Growth, today let’s take a look at our roots. In what ways are roots important to plant health? How does “being rooted and grounded in love” foster a stronger and healthier spirit? Here are some excerpts from The Importance of Healthy Plant Roots | Bonnie Plants, that also relate to our personal roots:

Did you know that what you see above ground in your plants is really determined by what’s hidden underground? What happens underground, where the plant roots live, drives plant growth. The bigger and healthier the root system, the bigger and healthier the plant. What do healthy roots do?

~ First, they provide the anchor needed to keep a plant in place…

As we deepen and extend our roots into the love of Christ, we become well-anchored to withstand any buffeting winds of change, drenching raindrops of sorrow, or pummeling hailstones of hurt that come our way. We learn to bend and recover, absorb and revive, strengthen and heal, while we are firmly secured in love – through all of the challenges of life.

~ More importantly, roots are the lifeline of a plant, taking up air, water, and nutrients from the soil and moving them up into the leaves, where they can interact with sunlight to produce sugars, flavors, and energy for the plant…

Did you ever place a celery stalk in colored water when you were a child? This simple science experiment demonstrated how a plant uses capillary action and osmosis to absorb and move water through itself. Over time, the color was visibly drawn up through the celery and into the leaves. Like the celery, as we deepen our roots and absorb more and more of the love of Christ, that love will become increasingly visible in us, too.

~ Additionally, biologists have recently discovered that roots actually secrete compounds that affect the microorganisms in the soil, doing things like helping protect the plant from disease and encouraging it to absorb nutrients from the soil…

With our roots grounded in love, we willingly contribute to the good of others. Doing so helps all of us to be healthier; as we protect and build one another up, we also strengthen ourselves. Our roots become our strong foundation as we intertwine and support one another.

So how do you get a system of good, healthy roots? Remember seven words: “Healthy, deep soil. Adequate moisture and nutrients.” If everything you do in your garden works toward that, your plants should thrive.

Our next verses from Ephesians reveal our source of “Healthy, deep soil. Adequate moisture and nutrients.”

I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:18-19 NRSV)

Our roots have plenty of room to extend into the “breadth and length and height and depth” of the nourishing soil of God’s love. And this love is right here, ready for us to deepen our roots, absorb love beyond knowledge, and grow into all the fullness of God.

Photo by Evergreens and Dandelions on Unsplash