Last time I talked about roots of sin that grow deep and can be hard to get rid of.  This week I will reflect on good roots, roots of righteousness.  So how do we grow good deep roots.  Good roots only grow in good soil.  If you really want good roots and good fruit in your life, you must plant your roots in Christ Jesus.  He said in John 15:5  “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

And in Colossians 2:6-8 it says,  “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.”

 So practically speaking, how do we grow our roots deep into Jesus so we can bear much fruit?  Let me offer some suggestions.

• You have to draw life and strength from His life. This starts with knowing who He really is, not just some socially distorted version of the real Jesus that you picked up here and there.
• To know Him, you have to read the word of God, and not just the New Testament. Jesus is God, and to know who God is – as much as we humanly can – we need to see the whole story of who He is from “In the beginning” in Genesis 1 to the end of the story in Revelation.  What has He done?  How does He treat His people?  What emotions does He have?  How does He feel about rebellion?  What are all the wonders and miracles He has done to show His might and power?  What prophecies has He spoken through the prophets and then later fulfilled?  (Did you know that by some counts there are 1817 prophecies in scripture?)  What kind of plans does He have for the future?  To really know Him, is to form a deep connection with who He is so we have roots that grow into His nature – from which we can draw strength.
• Another way we form a deep connection with Jesus is to talk to Him – not just spouting out our pray requests, but having a conversation – telling Him how we feel about things, what we are concerned about, what we are afraid of, what we have questions about, etc. He wants very much to have an intimate relationship with us.  This deepens our roots into Him.
• The next thing mentioned in Colossians is “strengthened in the faith as you were taught.” Our faith is strengthened when we are in fellowship with other believers and we are being taught from God’s Word.
• And when we pour out our hearts in thanksgiving to Him, our gratitude roots grow and our sense of appreciation grows, which affects everyone in our lives. So find some things to give thanks for today.

And may your life overflow with fruitfulness.

Blessings,

Linnea