Roots Going Deep

Roots Going Deep

[Those who delight in the law of the Lord] are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do. Psalm 1:3

Blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Jeremiah 17:7-8

One of the lessons I learn from gardening is the importance of a good root system. If I sow my flower seeds around the intricate roots of the large tree in the front yard, they can’t develop their own roots and therefore don’t grow properly. If I plant a tree in the ground three days before a cold snap or an ice storm, its roots haven’t had a chance to grow so the little tree can’t withstand the cold and promptly dies.

Throughout the Bible God gives us pictures of the importance of having our roots deep in him. In Psalm 1 we learn that those who delight in doing everything the Lord wants and meditate on his Word day and night are like trees planted along a riverbank: “Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do” (1:3). In Jeremiah, we find that those who trust in God (in contrast to those who trust in human beings and have turned away from God) are like trees whose “roots . . . reach deep into the water.” Even in long months of drought and stressful conditions, their leaves stay green, and they go right on producing delicious fruit even into old age (see Jeremiah 17:5-8). This means that though our bodies may decline or grow more fragile with advancing age, when we’re grounded in the soil of God’s love and truth, his Spirit will renew our inner strength day by day. As we are rooted in Christ’s inexhaustible supply, we will continue to be productive and bring glory to God as long as we live. What amazing grace! —CHERI

Father, you are my hope and my confidence. Let me never turn from you, but in each experience of life let my roots go deeper into you. May I stay in continual communion with you through prayer so that your life will flow through me and make my soul prosperous even into old age.

A person without prayer is like a tree without roots. —PIUS XII (1876–1958), POPE