Deep Roots
READ
In today’s passage, Paul uses an agricultural metaphor: rooted and built up in Christ. Deep roots provide stability in storms and nourishment for growth. The local church is the soil in which these roots grow deep.
Let’s take a moment to read 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.
REFLECT
Without rootedness in a local body, we become susceptible to every wind of teaching, isolated in our struggles, and disconnected from the nourishment that comes through community.
Think about the difference between a potted plant and a tree growing in a forest. The potted plant can look beautiful on your windowsill, but it's limited—limited in how deep its roots can go, how large it can grow, how much stress it can withstand. The tree in the forest, though? Its roots spread deep and wide, intermingling with other roots, drawing from shared resources, weathering storms because it's part of an ecosystem.
Many modern Christians approach faith like potted plants. We want to keep our spirituality portable, controllable, convenient. We'll consume Christian content online, listen to podcasts, maybe stream a service when it fits our schedule. These aren't bad things, but they can't substitute for the deep rootedness that comes from being planted in a local body of believers.
The imagery used in Psalm 1 is striking: the blessed person is like a tree planted by streams of water. Notice—planted, not potted. This suggests permanence, commitment, stability. The tree doesn't move when conditions change. It stays planted, roots digging deeper, drawing from sources of nourishment that sustain it even in drought.
The local church provides multiple streams of nourishment. There's the regular teaching of God's Word, helping us renew our minds. There's the accountability of brothers and sisters who know us and love us enough to speak truth. There's the encouragement that comes from witnessing others' faithfulness. There's the serving that keeps us from becoming self-focused. There's the worship that reorients our hearts toward God.
But rootedness takes time. You can't show up occasionally and expect deep roots. Roots grow slowly, consistently, through regular presence and participation. They grow through seasons—not just the sunny growth seasons, but also through winters of doubt, storms of conflict, and droughts of spiritual dryness. Trees that weather these seasons together develop the strongest root systems.
Paul's instruction to "continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith" suggests an ongoing process. This isn't a one-time decision but a daily choice to remain planted, to keep drawing from the nourishment available in Christ and in community.
Here's what's at stake: without deep roots, we become "tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching" (Ephesians 4:14). We're vulnerable to deception, prone to discouragement, and easily swept away when trials come. We need the stability that rootedness provides.
The invitation today is to examine your rootedness honestly. Are you deeply planted in a local church, or are you keeping your options open, your commitment tentative, your roots shallow? Are you drawing nourishment from the streams God provides through community, or are you trying to sustain your spiritual life in isolation?
Being rooted doesn't mean being rigid. Trees bend in the wind; they don't break. But they bend from a place of deep rootedness. The same is true for us. When we're rooted in Christ and in community, we can be flexible, adaptive, and gracious—because we're secure.
RESPOND
Take a moment to process what God might be leading you to do in light of what you read.
How deeply rooted are you in your local church? What practices help you establish deeper roots?
Looking at the fruit in your life (love, joy, peace, patience, etc.), what does it reveal about the health of your roots?
REST
Take a moment to rest in God’s presence and consider one thing you can take away from your time reading, then close your devotional experience by praying:
Lord, I want to be like a tree planted by streams of water—deeply rooted, consistently nourished, bearing fruit in season. Forgive me when I've been content with shallow roots and superficial connections. Help me to commit more deeply to the local body You've placed me in. Teach me to draw from the nourishment You provide through community, Word, worship, and service. Make me fruitful for Your kingdom. Amen.