Part One of Four: The Roots

I recently visited Cathedral Grove in BC Canada. It is a place where many old and very tall trees reside. It is serene and a quiet place to be accept for the occasional chatter of a few people. Although many trees remain standing, there are a few that laid flat on the ground due to a once extreme storm. It is a shame that they weren’t strong enough to withstand the power of the wind.

It is too bad that some of our relationships/marriages do not stand the test of time and fall because of the various storms that attack those institutions. As I walked through the Grove, I could see another spiritual parallel of the tree.

v6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
v7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. – [Colossians 2:6-7 KJV]

Shallow Roots
The roots of a tree give it stability, making it possible to stand when the storms of life hit. Like a house or building, the roots of the tree are its foundation. If the roots are not deep enough, the tree will not stand and it will fall. It is simple physics, and since all truth is parallel, it is simple faith.

I see the shallow roots of a tree as the weaknesses and sins of man [1], and the lack of change that creates instability. Nothing describes man better in terms of weaknesses or strengths as do the temperaments. These temperaments are melancholy, sanguine, phlegmatic, and choleric.

Everyone has a root temperament and has qualities of at least two. Having said this, if a person is unwilling to change in the slightest, there will be no growth for that person. Without change, relationships can be doomed especially if one is of a stronger type than the other.

The storms of sin hit us all. The winds of the storm are anger, jealousy, fear, regret, unbelief, while others it might be allot more severe like pornography. Seven things God hates and you can find them in Proverbs 6:16-19. These and other sins are the winds that blow over the tree of relationship (and they don’t do the individual any good either, but we’ll cover that in part three.

Deep Roots
Love in a relationship is much like a tree, when you have a deeply rooted love, life works. Relationships work. Love is give and take, which sometimes, requires change even if slightly away from our temperament. Otherwise a person can become stagnant and a relationship can falter and suffer. It takes much more but this is a good start. Love is all about the other person, not about the individual. So if we need to change. . .change. Whatever we need to do, do the thing.

When a tornado hits, it rips the trees with shallow roots from the soil, but those with deep roots remain standing. If the shallow roots do not change and head for deeper soil, it is doomed to lay flat like those I encountered at Cathedral Grove. In the same way, God challenges us to have those same kinds of deep roots in Him [2]. Jesus also warns us of the dangers of shallow roots in the parable of the seed.

v5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:
v6 But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. – [Mark 4:5-6 KJV]

So root yourself in Christ DEEPLY. Develop a hunger for Him. Focus on Him. Love Him with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength [3]. He IS the answer to all things. He IS the Way, the Truth, and the Life [4]. You will not get to heaven without Him. There is nothing stronger that a threefold cord – Man, woman, and Jesus Christ [Ecclesiastes 4:12]. Sorry, but do not shoot the messenger.
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[1] Man or woman. . .mankind
[2] Jeremiah 17:8
[3] Mark 12:30
[4] John 14:6