I use to be a children's director. When I was hired for the privilege, the ministry really needed a name and direction. The name I decided on was "Rooted" and the verse we used was of course: Ephesians 3:16-18 "(16) I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, (17) so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, (18) may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, (19) and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." I chose it for obvious reasons. 1- we all want our children to be rooted, grounded in Christ, and 2- I believe childhood is obviously the foundation of ones life, where your roots begin. All this time I had been thinking really the cliché that rooted just meant a foundation, ummmmm standing firm in Christ etc... I still believe that but I am beginning to think it means a lot more. The definition of the word "root" is three fold "1)the part of a plant that grows underground, gets water from the ground, and holds the plant in place 2)the part of a tooth, hair, fingernail, etc., that is attached to the body; 3)the cause or source of something." Webster goes on to use phrases like "an underlying support, close relationship with an environment, something that is an origin or source, the essential core..." Whoa, it is way more than what I was thinking. I was thinking a little bit on the lighter side like, the beginning of something. It is so much more than that, it is literally life-giving. Roots do not just support and keep something upright they give life, water, they are essential, they have a close relationship with the environment around them.
I named my blog rooted mom because that is what I long for. Little did I know what I was asking for, or even praying for my children. I had this pretty little picture in my head but in reality roots are strong, messy, complex. Roots can even cause some serious damage to homes, plumbing and other trees. They really are not to be messed with. This is some info I found while reading about roots "Tree roots serve two VITAL functions; they gather nutrients from the soil and they support the weight of the top growth of the tree. Like an iceberg, a large tree requires a large substructure..." So, they are Vital, necessary and if you want to be "big" or influential, strong, stand out, set apart... you have to have a large substructure. And not only do you need the substructure, it needs to be functioning constantly. Roots would be useless if they were not functioning correct? If they were not doing their job, the tree dies, rots, becomes top heavy and collapses. So not only do we need to be rooted, we need to have roots that are WORKING...constantly. Boom, my tree just fell...YIKES my roots are totally wimpy I will admit.
Never before have I put this much thought into this bible verse and it is SO important and has been so important in my life. We dedicated my oldest daughter with this verse and it has been VITAL to my walk with the Lord. It is amazing what going deeper can do, and how one verse can mean so much and yet when you dig in it can mean even more. I am being called to be rooted but it means so much more now, strong, vital, established, life giving, getting along with the environment around me, supportive and FUNCTIONING... all of these things I am called to be. That is a lot, and seems so daunting to me. Luckily we are well equipped roots. It is not like God just stuck a seed in the ground and said go for it. We are fortunate enough He has given us the tools to cultivate, grow, stand firm and most importantly to FUNCTION. I am so thankful for eyes to see and ears to hear. I pray only that I can function as I am called to...
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