Rooted and Established – The Start of a Relationship

Dec 18 – Made New

This time of year seems to invite people to consider where they are spiritually.  There is more quiet time than usual (or maybe the quiet just seems louder because everyone gets so busy) and that quiet sometimes gets us to thinking.  What does it mean to invite God to be a part of my life?  Is that something I’m ready to do?  What might change about my life if I did that?  Lots of questions come to our minds.  Paul, the guy who wrote today’s scripture was praying for some specific things for people as they began their relationship with God.  One thing Paul alludes to that really can change our lives when we ask God to be a part of them is the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is part of God.  It is His unseen presence in our lives that allows for God to speak to us in ways we don’t understand and His power in us that can change our lives for the better.

The other thing Paul prays for is that we would be able to grasp the vastness of God’s love and that we would be “filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”  That is one intense request!  He prays that we might do this by being “rooted and established in love.”  What do you think that means?  I’m not even too sure but here’s how I think of it – Think about a plant.  If you pour water into the soil where its roots are, what’s going to flow throughout the plant?  Water.  If you put soda into the soil instead, what is (presumably) going to flow through the plant?  Soda.  So…if we are rooted in love, what is going to flow through our lives?  Love.  When that is our foundation, it affects every part of us.  What else do roots do?  They hold the plant in place.  When the plant has been “established” – been planted long enough for it to have a chance to grow – the roots keep the plant from moving around too much and from collapsing.  And so it is with us…

Have you been rooted and established in love?  What would it look like in your life if you started planting those roots now?  In this Christmas season, I encourage you to spend some time thinking about where you are in your relationship with God.  Consider taking another step closer to Him and allowing Him to be an even greater part of your life.  Spend a little more time with Him and start giving Him control over some of the things in your life.  Then you really will begin to see the power of God living inside of you…