Deeply Rootedfeatured

This painting is called “Deeply Rooted” and in my search for a Bible verse to go with this painting, I found two equally great contenders:

• Colossians 2:6-7 – “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”
• Ephesians 3:17-18 – “…And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ…”

Paul is clearly stating that being rooted (in Christ and His love) is important to our spiritual health.  I think that being rooted and established is also important for plants to thrive.  Deep, established roots are key to the plant’s health.

Now I am not a good gardener.  My house is more a place where plants go to die instead of thrive.  The reality is that I know the basics of what to do (good soil, water, feed, prune, etc.).  For me it is a problem of not consistently following through on what I know to do.  My plants suffer from benign neglect, so many of my plants tend to have relatively short life-spans.

So, it should come as no surprise that I am often not a very good “gardener” when it comes to my spiritual “garden.”  I know what it takes to thrive as a Christian (prayer, worship, Bible study, community with other Christians) but I don’t always consistently follow through and spiritual withering ensues!  As I look at the verses above, the benefits of healthy spiritual roots are pretty awesome:

• My faith will grow in strength.
• I’ll be so full of thankfulness that it overflows.
• My relationships with fellow believers will deepen.
• Best of all, I will experience the extravagant love of Christ in ever deeper ways.

Do I really want to miss out on these riches that God has waiting for me?  In reality there is no such thing as benign neglect when it comes to our relationship with God. The consequences of neglect are far from benign – they are eternal.  Time to get to tending those roots!

P.S.  It was a tough choice, but I chose the Ephesians verse to go with the painting.  There is no better picture of the magnitude of Christ’s love for us than the cross!

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