Jeremiah 17 tells us:

⁷ “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,
    whose confidence is in him.
⁸ They will be like a tree planted by the water
    that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
    its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
    and never fails to bear fruit.”

Where we place our trust is what grounds us.  So if that thing, person, or idea is uncertain or temporary, our foundation will be, too.

This became a reality for me when I moved here.  I had no idea how much I was leaning on my achievements.  I was putting my trust in myself and what I was doing.  So when seasons changed and I started over, my identity, as I knew it, was destroyed.

Beginning again, with new country, language, marriage, no job or friends or family, I realized I had nothing familiar to lean on.  As painful as that has been, it has taught me, slowly, over the years, that I must be rooted in one thing.

In planting myself in the Lord, I have nothing to fear.  Storms continue to come.  But as I choose to draw near to Him and allow Him to strengthen and grow my roots, I can trust He does not fail.  If I stay planted firm in Him, I continue to bear fruit.

 

How can I be rooted today?

Photo by Victoria Palacios on Unsplash