Deep Roots
Read Jeremiah 17: 7-8
[Blessed is the one whose] delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither – whatever they do prospers. – Psalm 1:1-3
While being mobilized with the Army Reserves to Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas since 2022, I have taken many hikes through west Texas and southern New Mexico. The scenery is quite a contrast to the lush, green vegetation of our home state of Michigan. The landscape is brown and arid – except a few green trees that caught my attention. I was intrigued. How could those trees be so green, while all the other vegetation around them was so dry?
Farther down the trail I came upon a placard that explained that the trees we were looking at were junipers. They have unique root structure that allows them to thrive in arid lands. While the root systems of most plants are shallow, the roots of the juniper tree can go down to 25 feet and spread 100 feet in search of water. Their root system allows them to survive drought, while other plants wilt.
This made me wonder: What is our ability to survive spiritual droughts? How deep are our roots? What can we do to help our roots find the source of the life-giving water? Regular study of the Bible, prayer, devotional literature, and participating in the church community are some of the practices that help us remain deeply rooted and spiritually green in arid seasons!
Prayer:
Dear God, help us to grow deep and wide-spreading roots that search for your life-giving water in all seasons. Amen.
Ben DeWitt
Thought For The Day: Practicing spiritual disciplines will help me avoid spiritual drought.
Prayer Focus: Hikers
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