A bigger hole

Thomas Fuller reminds us: "One that would have the fruit must climb the tree." I would say the one that would have the fruit must first have a good root! Without proper rooting, the tree may grow for a while, but the fruit will be lacking. The tree will not withstand the winds that actually challenge its footing.

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. (Colossians 2:6-7)

Fuller also reminds us it is possible to miss the mark simply by aiming too high or too low. Where is your aim today? At what (or may I ask at whom) are you aiming? If you are to have deep roots, you must aid them in growth. 

I have planted trees in my hard Arizona soil. Before I could sink those trees deep into the harder soil, they had to take root in rich, easily tended soil. They had to be grown, well-rooted, with roots ready to make their way in this hard soil.

I had to prepare the soil - digging a much bigger hole than the tree roots required right now. Then I added all manner of nutrients and rich mulch to the hole. Why? To give the roots the greatest chance to take hold. 

God does much the same with us. He lets us take root in 'safety' and 'security', then as he 'transplants' us into the place where we will one day flourish and bear fruit, he does so with absolute care to ensure our 'roots' grow deep and our footing is sure.

You may feel like being 'transplanted' is scary, but chances are when God is ready to bring forth great fruit in your life, it will require a 'bigger hole' for those roots to take hold! Just sayin!

Plucked or Refreshed?

Are you a 'radical' when it comes to change? Radical: of or going to the root or origin of something. If you haven't really thought about what "radical change" is, you might be a little surprised to find out it is change which goes after the "root" or "origin" of something in order to so totally change what has become "traditional" or "normal" in one's life. If a business wants to "re-invent" themselves because they have been losing customers to some other big-name chain with a newer look, what do they do? They go through some "radical change" to make us believe this is the store we want to be shopping at instead of the other guys. J.C. Penney did just that - they changed up the lines they carried, took out a whole bunch of their stock, remodeled the interiors of the stores to be more "hip", but they lost business! Most of us who shopped at Penney's did so for a reason - the consistency of finding the lines we liked, that fit us well, at a reasonable price range. They thought they had to "change" their "core" in order to draw business back into their store. In reality, their "core" was pretty good, they probably just needed to make some subtle changes to attract the crowd of shoppers they were aiming to draw in, but without sacrificing the loyalty of those who looked to them for their "core" purchases. Sometimes I think we do the same thing when God asks us to begin to change in a particular area. We think he wants some big "revamp" of everything, so we set about to go through a major "redo", all the while forgetting about the "core values" he has already worked out in our lives.

You didn’t think, did you, that just by pointing your finger at others you would distract God from seeing all your misdoings and from coming down on you hard? Or did you think that because he’s such a nice God, he’d let you off the hook? Better think this one through from the beginning. God is kind, but he’s not soft. In kindness he takes us firmly by the hand and leads us into a radical life-change. (Romans 2:3-4)

When God goes after the "root" in our lives, it isn't always to "pluck it up"! In fact, sometimes he just needs to "stimulate" it a little in order to get it on track with healthy growth. We cannot sacrifice those "core values" he has already worked into our lives - in other words, we don't throw the baby out with the bath water! Sure, God wants us to be affected deeply, changing where change is needed, and developing a keener awareness of what it is he desires of us, but he doesn't want us to neglect or forget the values he has already worked into our lives. I think this is a common issue for many of us - we see there is a a slightly newer focus God is asking of us, and we forget about the "old" in order to pay attention to the "new". What happens to the old? It gets neglected. What happens when something is neglected? It begins to no longer be the "practiced" behavior. Some roots need a little "plucking". It is like when a store might realize a particular line of clothing or household goods is no longer selling. They might want to either consider "restyling" those clothes to stay in fashion, or just drop the line totally. Sometimes a simple "restyle" is all that is needed - because the "basics" are there - they just need a little attention. At other times, the styles have moved on and it is time to retire the line - like polyester jumpsuits! The basic black dress or skirt will never go out of style, but they may "restyle" it with a different hem line, or perhaps a new cut to the neckline in order to keep it "new". One gets at the root in order to eliminate the line, while the other simply allows the root to be stimulated to produce a new line.

God wants radical life change, not just a 'restyle' of our lives. As he makes change in our lives, he doesn't go about plucking up the previous change and then growing another. He keeps the changes we have made and then "adds" changes by stimulating us at the "root" of our being (the core) in order to bring about even more growth. We have to be aware of which one of these God is doing - plucking up or stimulating the roots. When we know he is after the removal of something from the "roots up", then we let go of it. When we see he is just "digging around those roots" a little, we can be assured what he sees is good at the core, we just need a little help to bring the best growth forth. Core change (radical change) often requires an expertise we don't possess on our own. We need God taking us by the hand and "leading" us into this change, otherwise our "best" change may just be a flop. The ideas we have for change aren't "bad", they just aren't God's ideal for our lives - we need his "ideal", not just our "best". It is heartwarming to me to realize God is leading us through this change. He doesn't expect us to dig around those roots on our own - nor does he expect us to know which ones need to be totally plucked up. He takes us by the hand, suggesting a certain degree of intimacy and caring, doesn't it? He is going to get "deep into" our core and he wants us to know how much he cares about what it is he is doing.

When we take the hand of another, we are usually doing it because we want to express something in that connection, isn't it? We don't do it with everyone. If we just walked up to every stranger we saw and reached out to take their hand, we'd soon see some pretty radical behavior from them, wouldn't we? They'd pull back, even scream in surprise. Why? We don't have relationship with them, and we have no right to hold their hands! If they were drowning in the lake, they might just crave that connection, but not when they are minding their own business window shopping at the mall! God doesn't just march right up to us and take us by the hand, telling us he is taking us to the place of change. He establishes relationship with us, then he begins to connect with us frequently enough to allow us to develop a trust relationship with him. Taking the hand of one we trust is much easier, isn't it? We might just crave these times of "hand leading", because they show how much we are really loved. When God takes us by the hand, it isn't because he is angry with us, it is because he cares so much for us that he doesn't want to see us continue to embrace stuff in our lives that is doing us harm. His handholding is not just casual - it is purposeful. He leads, we follow. He squeezes tight, we know he is at work. He pulls back, we know it is time to stop. His touch is our means for radical life change. Just sayin!

Are you ignorant?

Confucius said, "Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance." It might be uncomfortable to ask the question, but I will anyway - just how aware of your own ignorance are you? I looked at myself first when posing that question, so don't think I am meddling here. In truth, I really deny some of the areas of my life where I am ignorant - lacking in knowledge, untrained, unlearned. If I were to be truthful here, it isn't that I am lacking in the training as much as I am lacking in the learning! I repeat mistakes for this very reason. When the mistake is easily corrected, that may not be a big deal - when it is harder to correct or leaves lasting 'scars', it is a much bigger deal, isn't it? Ignorance can also be that we are unaware of something - an action we take when we might not even know what is behind that action or that we are taking it in the first place. Both are equally as important to consider today - if we remain 'ignorant' in any of these 'problem areas' within our lives, it is quite possible we will continue to fumble along making the same mistakes time and time again.

God overlooks it as long as you don’t know any better—but that time is past. The unknown is now known, and he’s calling for a radical life-change. He has set a day when the entire human race will be judged and everything set right. And he has already appointed the judge, confirming him before everyone by raising him from the dead.” (Acts 17:30-31)

Really focus on that first sentence of our passage today - God overlooks our bumbling around as long as we don't 'know better', but as soon as we 'know better' - there is no room left for excuses. I know how to act and how to show respect to others - do I always act well around others? Not always - sometimes I get a little too self-focused, intent on what I want, and I forget to show others respect. Do I really forget, or do I choose to ignore what I know? It may be a little of both, but if we are truthful with ourselves here, we oftentimes know something isn't right and choose to ignore the 'niggling feeling' to avoid that path. In essence, we are being ignorant - unlearned, but the good news is that we aren't untrainable! We are capable of learning new actions - we just have to choose them.

The time is past for making excuses for our short-comings and self-centered actions - those things we have really not been paying much attention to in our lives that are causing us to live far below the standard of righteousness that God requires of his kids. That may be a hard statement for some of us to swallow - because we aren't ready to let go of what should have remained in our past. God calls for a radical life change. Did you realize 'radical' means 'the root of the matter'? Radical comes from the Latin word meaning to 'have roots' or 'forming roots'. A radical life change means we deal with the roots - not just the surface stuff. We look first at where our roots are planted. If not in 'good soil', then it may be time for a 'transplant'. 

We look next at where those roots have embraced things that impede their growth and focus on removing those things. It might be our roots are a little too tightly 'coiled around' something we didn't want to deal with and have just left buried for all the years. We grew roots, but we coiled them around and around that hard place in our lives until the 'stone' became a part of our lives. Being transplanted doesn't mean we let go of the stones - it might take some work to dislodge the stone from the roots! If we don't want to allow ignorance to be our 'norm' we have to embrace truth - not just listen to it, but actually do what truth says. Sometimes we treat truth as 'advice' - we can take it or leave it depending on our mood. Truth isn't advice - it is the 'foundation' that we need even when we don't know we need it. Just sayin!

Radical Roots - 101

Faith is what makes real the things we hope for. It is proof of what we cannot see. 

(Hebrews 11:1 ERV)

Look up faith in any dictionary and you are likely to find a definition referring to the belief or trust in God one might have. This morning, I'd like us to consider what "radical faith" looks like - because I think this might just be what God intends for each of us. Faith is more than just a belief - it is a lifestyle - an allegiance and loyalty to someone or something. I have said it before, I can believe my car will start when I hit that ignition button each time, but I am like the rest of you - there have been times when I have just plain had a dead battery! The engine doesn't kick over - the car goes nowhere - and I am stuck wherever it is I am until that changes. In Arizona, the cells of these batteries dry out way too quickly and even "maintenance-free" batteries need maintaining! In our spiritual walk, sometimes what needs to happen is a little less of that "blind trust" - we need "roots" to our trust - and those roots need a little maintaining. 

Radical faith is that which has roots - solidly planted, immovable, and tapped into that which will nourish and make complete. Did you ever realize we get our word radical from the Latin word "radix" - the same word we get the word "radish" from. It refers to a root - that which gives anchorage and support. It refers to the "essential core" of something or someone. Our faith is defined by what is at the "essential core" of our lives - be it ourselves or God - that "core" is what will give us immovable anchorage or give way whenever the undermining effects of sin and pride get the best of us. We need deep roots - they help us stay "anchored" in what is going to see us through - they are always hopeful because they continue to grow toward that which gives them continual and ample supply!

Paul goes on in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews to remind us that faith helps understand what we cannot see - but which is all-powerful and all-knowing. It helps us understand the "unseen God" of the universe. God wants us to enjoy the blessing of knowing him deeply - of full restoration into fellowship with him. From there, we grow deeper and deeper in our devotion to him. That devotion fuels our passion for living and our delight in even the simplest of things. There is much to be said about having "good roots" - but equally as much to be said about where it is we find "a foothold" for those roots! Maybe it is time to not so much say we have "no faith" or "faulty faith", but that we look at where it is we have taken root. That place of our deepest roots should be will be where we go to find our strength. If it is barren ground, we can have all the roots we want, but we will still live barren lives. Just sayin!

Don't just deal with what is seen

It was the German philosopher Immanuel Kant who quipped: "If man makes himself a worm he must not complain when he is trodden on." Oh, boy, is that one right on, or what? There are so many today who live like their lives are entirely their own, taking actions they don't do such a good job of thinking upon prior to taking, then they look at those all around them as though they should have been rescued instead of reaping the consequences of those actions. They cry out for someone to have intervened - to have stopped the pain for them - but they do absolutely nothing to remove themselves from the very thing that causes them all the pain.

The Lord approves of those who are good, but he condemns those who plan wickedness. Wickedness never brings stability, but the godly have deep roots. (Proverbs 12:2-3 NLT)

The godly have deep roots - the difference between the wise and the unwise is in the roots, but also in the place the roots take hold. The roots are one thing - but the placement of those roots is quite another. My son-in-law is digging up roots that are leaving his yard rather uneven, causing it to be very hard to place things under that tree that gives such good shade to the patio. He desires to have his many varieties of hot peppers planted under that tree, but in order to do that, he has to level the ground to make a way for a bed to be built around that tree's base. In order to level the ground, he has to deal with the roots that are just way too close to the surface.

It is often the things that we see on the surface of our lives we deal with first (sometimes these are all we deal with). We see them - noticing their affect in our lives - so we deal with them. This is not uncommon for us - dealing with what we can see or appreciate to be there in our lives, all the while missing the roots that go much deeper. These surface roots are what give us problems - especially when they are the only roots that hold us rooted at all. I commented to my daughter that I think there are roots much deeper for this tree, because it is in an area that gets enough water and it has been challenged by many a wind storm, surviving well. I am not worried that dealing with these problematic surface roots will topple the tree.

There are times when all the roots we see are all the roots that exist - problematic as they are, to dig them up is to affect the entire stability of what is growing from those roots! In life, there are times when the best thing we can do is to be transplanted into different soil - to allow those roots to take hold in a place, and in conditions that foster the deepest growth in us. We may only want to deal with the things we can see on the surface, but God is after the deeper roots in our lives. These are the roots that cause us to complain when we feel things aren't going "our way" in life - even when we have chosen a way that is totally contrary to reason or knowledge. The difficulty of the transplanting process is not all that easily embraced by some, but it can become the very place we develop in such a manner so as to be able to take deep root, develop strength and stability in our walk, and to foster new growth that will outlast the hardest seasons in life. 

We might deal with what is on the surface, but if what is underneath the surface is never dealt with, it will resurface once again. We might complain when the way gets hard and the progress is slower than we wanted it to be, but God isn't dealing with just those things we see - he is after things much, much deeper - the things that will give us wisdom in trouble and strength in times of the greatest tempests of temptation we can experience. Just sayin!

Roots in the sewer?

For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us. (I Corinthians 2:10-12 NLT)

Did you ever stop to really consider why it is we are given the Spirit of God as a teacher or guide in our lives? In looking at this passage again this morning, I realized it is so we can know the really intentional and purposeful thoughts of God - so we can really get to know him on an intimate basis. It is so true that the thoughts of one man's mind are known only to him - he has to share them in his words, actions, and attitude in order for us to even get a "hint" of what might be going on in that mind. In elementary school the kids used to taunt with the saying, "It takes one to know one", whenever someone pointed out some flaw in another person. Maybe there is just a little more truth to that than we might first like to admit!

I think of the mind as the place where roots take hold. Just as a tree is seen from the "surface up", most of the really important things we need to know about the tree are under the surface! The nice leaves and swaying branches are pretty and might bring us some enjoyment, but if the roots are having a hard time under the ground, or meddling in territory they should not be meddling in, that tree may look okay for a while, but eventually it will reveal what is underneath! Tree roots have to go deep - if too close to the surface and just sprawling out everywhere, the tree will topple when the winds come. Tree roots have both the potential to "take hold" and to be kind of "invasive" at times. We want them to have a good "hold", but we don't want them to be invading places they'd be best to stay out of in the first place!

A man's thoughts are known to that man until they are revealed by the evidence of what has "taken root" in the mind. If the mind lays out a rooting system that is too superficial, the actions of the man will be kind of wishy-washy and very scattered in focus. If the mind gets into territory it should not be in, the actions of the man will be destructive or unkind to whatever they come in contact with. If you have ever had a root system of a tree damage your water or sewer lines, you know exactly what I am trying to illustrate. We want the roots - we just don't want them to go where they aren't supposed to be!

We are given the Spirit of God to help us understand the mind of Christ and begin to see as he sees, act as he acts. We might have some "root thoughts" that need a little "uprooting". They have gone where they shouldn't have gone - so they are dabbling in things and places they have no business dabbling in as a believer. Until we allow God to reveal to us where those roots have taken hold, we will continue to act in ways that are destructive to our walk. God reveals his mind to us so that we know the specific "root system" we are to have in order to act as Christ acts. Back a few years ago, a phrase was all the rage in Christian circles: "What Would Jesus Do" or WWJD was everywhere. People wore bracelets with the WWJD lettering - others displayed it on bumper stickers and t-shirts. To really understand what Jesus would do, we need his mind! Just sayin!

Tumbleweed or Tree?

Depend:  To rely, place trust; to be sure of.  We depend upon a lot of things, don't we?  We depend on getting to work on time just because we were on the road by our "usual" time today.  The hazards along the way may provide a later arrival than anticipated, but we still depended upon getting there on time because we did our part.  We depend upon our laundry detergent to remove the stains in our clothing, despite the fact the stains are set in and rather stubborn ones at that.  When the detergent doesn't "perform" as anticipated, we buy a different type the next time because we have to "depend" upon the detergent to do its job.  We get into trouble when our dependence upon something or someone is stronger than our dependence upon God.  I am not saying we should depend on God to get the stains out of our jeans, but he is pretty awesome at getting stains out of our "genes"!

Cursed is the strong one who depends on mere humans, who thinks he can make it on muscle alone and sets God aside as dead weight.  He’s like a tumbleweed on the prairie, out of touch with the good earth.  He lives rootless and aimless in a land where nothing grows.  But blessed is the man who trusts me, God, the woman who sticks with God.  They’re like trees replanted in Eden, putting down roots near the rivers—never a worry through the hottest of summers, never dropping a leaf, serene and calm through droughts, bearing fresh fruit every season.  (Jeremiah 17:5-8 MSG)

I live in the middle of the desert, so I understand the 'stunted' growth of desert shrubs.  They just don't grow big and hearty like the elms, oaks, and cedars in the more "well-watered" regions of our country.  They are brittle and dry - even their coloring is kind of "anemic".  The leaves are not the lush deep greens of the trees of the well-watered regions, but rather a light grey green. They just don't look 'healthy'.  There is something about being planted where you have opportunity for the greatest growth, isn't there?  As long as we are depending upon our own efforts to change our character, we are like the tumbleweed in the desert - out of touch with life!  I don't cater to the self-help gurus or their books which are hocked at our local book establishments.  Why?  Self cannot help self!  Only God can help self!  Depend long enough upon your "self" and you will become selfish, self-deceived, and self-absorbed.  Not the best list of qualities, right?

So, growth is dependent upon whom we depend upon.  If our dependence is on self, our growth will be disconnected from the sources of life which we need for balanced and vigorous growth.  At best, we may have leaves, but they are 'anemic' leaves!  Trees replanted in Eden really gives us a picture of flourishing growth - development beyond human capacity.  Eden was planted and tended by God's hand.  He put Adam in charge of the garden, but he was the one who ensured it was watered and receiving the nutrients it needed for robust growth.  We may "tend to" what God puts in our hands, but he is the one who plants the seed, nourishes it to full growth, and then enjoys the fruits from its growth!

A couple of things about depending upon God:

* Wherever we take root determines our potential for growth.  If our dependence is upon God, our roots go down deep into the soil of his Word.  We take frequent nourishment from it.  Superficial roots don't protect us in times of drought or the storms which come.  They are quickly affected by both.  To experience deep growth, we need deep roots.  Dependence upon God is often seen in examining where it is we have taken root, and how deeply those roots are set!

* Dependence upon God doesn't mean no drought will come.  It simply means we are in a position to weather the drought!  Sure our leaves wilt a little under the extreme intensity of the "season" of drought in our lives, but drought really only drives the roots deeper!  Think about it - you don't need deep roots if you can continue to find the source of what you need on the surface.  If the surface is dry, you go deeper!  God allows the seasons of drought in our lives not to scorch us and leave us detached from growth like the tumbleweed.  He allows them because he is counting on us taking deeper root during those seasons!

* Dependence means we place both our hope and confidence in the one upon whom we depend.  Hope reflects some future state - confidence reflects the presence determination of heart.  Confidence knows we are rooted exactly where we will find our source in the times of testing and trial.  Hope recognizes the times of testing and trial are only for a season.  

Tumbleweed or Tree?  Your roots reveal the truth.  Just sayin!

Tapped into the good stuff!

I recently was in the state of Washington and up into the Vancouver area.  I am always delighted to take in the lush greenery of areas who enjoy more rain and humidity than the dry deserts of Arizona afford.  Don't get me wrong, I love my desert!  Yet, the stark contrast between what grows here versus what grows in such a lush region is amazing.  The scrub of the desert probably is a little disappointing to the one from that region, but to me, it is a thing of mystery and beauty.  Why?  It never ceases to cause me to wonder at the ability of such flora and fauna to grow in such a seemingly desolate place!

What the wicked construct finally falls into ruin, while the roots of the righteous give life, and more life.  (Proverbs 12:12 The Message)

The region we traveled into had some trees clearly marked with tags which told of their age, height, and the width of their base.  What these tags did not say was how deep these 700 year old trees were, or what type of "base" soil they were rooted in.  One thing which we saw over and over was the evidence of roots - some closer to the surface than I would have imagined for the size of the tree.  What I did not see was the tap-root - but I did see evidence of it!  The lush growth and upright stability of the huge cedar gave evidence of being well-rooted with a tap-root going deep into soil which nourished its growth.

Just about a month before I left on vacation, my Chinese Elm tree began to seriously drop its leaves.  In fact, it was close to bare!  I thought for sure I had lost it to Elm's Disease or some fungus.  The first thing I thought to do was put more water on it.  So, I strung the hose to it - leaving it running slow for periods of 4-6 hours about two times a week.  Then, just to be sure nothing was "attacking" my tree, I put out some ant crystals.  Then, as though God specifically heard my prayers of not wanting to lose this great shade tree in my backyard, we enjoyed about three good rainstorms which actually dumped a good deal of rain in our neighborhood.

By the time I returned home, my tree was in full-leaf again!  You cannot imagine the joy I felt when I rounded the corner and saw my backyard enveloped in the greenery of its branches again!  Why did I turn to watering what looked so barren and without hope?  I knew it had deep roots!  This tree has survived the twisting storms of the monsoons and the 50-mph winds that come with these babies.  It endured the hottest 122-degree summer scorcher and faithfully filled out with new leaves each spring.  So, I knew it had more than surface-roots.  It had a tap-root deeper than I could see - it just wasn't getting enough water.

So, why do I share this tree saga with you this morning?  I think it is because WHERE we are planted matters, but what happens with our growth is really in huge part a matter of how well our "tap-root" connects with the resources we need!  The tap-root is a huge root, kind of straight in its growth, with lots of little appendages which sprout off it.  The tap-root is what makes the transplanting of the plant so difficult!  It not only makes the plant hard to uproot, but it makes moving it from one base of "planting" to another.  Now, do you see it?  When our tap-root is deep into Christ - all other roots which stem from this are going to just hold us in position and help feed us.  It makes us difficult to be uprooted by the struggles and challenges of the day-to-day stuff we have to deal with.

Do you know why you cannot get rid of dandelions by plucking them up from the earth?  It is because of their tap-root.  They grow back because the tap-root is still there!  The evidence shows up again and again!  I learned something about trees.  You can almost predict the distance of their roots (those which grow sideways out from the tap-root) by measuring the height of the tree.  They go out as far as the tree is high (or further)!  Now, bringing this back to you and I - our secondary roots anchor us and help us be fed, but nothing is as important to our growth and stability as our tap-root.  We all begin growth the same way - with a tap-root.  WHERE this root is formed matters!  

Not sure where you are "rooted" today.  One thing I know for sure - your tap-root gives evidence of both your stability and your certainty of growth!  Just sayin!

Anthills Galore!

Remember, you aren't feeding the root; the root is feeding you.

(Romans 11:18 The Message)

The entire chapter from which this verse is taken is about Israel - the chosen of God - and the "branches" that were grafted in.  Let me explain before I go on.  Israel was chosen to be the people of God - redeemed from a life of slavery and misery.  Then they chose their own way.  As Paul puts it:   Well, when Israel tried to be right with God on her own, pursuing her own self-interest, she didn't succeed. The chosen ones of God were those who let God pursue his interest in them, and as a result received his stamp of legitimacy. The "self-interest Israel" became thick-skinned toward God. (Romans 11:7 The Message)  Notice that I underlined a section of this passage.  Paul really sets out two diametrically opposed conditions of the heart - those that pursue God because of their own "self-interest" and those that let God pursue his interest in them.  

It was the pursuit of God in order to fulfill their own self-interest that caused Israel to reject their Messiah when he came (Jesus).  In turn, God made a way for the "outsiders" to the Jewish faith to be "grafted in".  That is what Paul has spent some time developing in this chapter - the non-Jew was pursued by God and grafted into the "family tree", so to speak.  Their rejection of the Messiah opened the door for those of us of that now are welcomed into the family of Christ.  There are a couple of things we need to see in this chapter that bear us spending some time considering.

First, God pursues us - we don't pursue him.  Whenever we get that backwards, we end up being unsuccessful in our pursuit!  It says that when we think we can pursue God on our terms, we actually get a little "thick-skinned" toward God.  We lose our sensitivity to the things of God's Spirit.  This means that we are so caught up in the way we "think" we should act, or dare I say perform, before God that we miss out on just being ourselves.  God doesn't pursue us because of anyway we "perform", but because he loves us.  God pursues "his interest" in us - in other words, he has invested in us and he is pursuing what he has an interest in!  

Second, thick-skinned people are really 'dull' in their perception of God's presence.  The people of Israel actually did not realize that the presence of God had left them - they were so caught up in their tendencies to do things on their own, looking to other gods, and being swayed by the religions of the day that they missed seeing God's presence was no longer there in their "worship".  Whenever we substitute anything for the presence of God in our lives, we run the same risk - becoming so thick-skinned that we don't even realize that the presence of God is gone!

Last, but certainly not least, we have a tendency to get things backwards when we get out of the presence of God.  Our passage puts it this way:  We think we feed the root and forget that the root actually feeds us!  I planted six plants in my yard about six weeks ago.  Three on the right side of the yard and three on the left.  The ones on the right are thriving, the ones on the left are withering.  At first, I thought it was a watering issue, but a quick check of the sprinkler system did not confirm that suspicion.  There was adequate water.  Then I wondered if it was too much sun on the left side of the yard compared to the right side, but I could not really see a difference there either.

In the end, here is what I discovered.  There are thousands of ants doing a number on the roots of those on the left side of the yard!  The plants don't have a chance to thrive because the ants are attacking the roots!  I have attempted to kill them, but they seem to be pretty impervious to the chemicals I have used and the hills just seem to flourish.  In the meantime, my little bushes are affected by what is happening to their roots.  The roots feed the plant, not the other way around!  Nothing kills the plant quicker than the roots being cut off from their source!

We should never forget that in God's pursuit of his interest in us, he ensures that the roots are planted in places where they will flourish.  He tends our lives with great care - when he is allowed to do the tending, that is!  He places us where we will grow - take root.  Then, he encompasses our roots with the spiritual nutrients that will bring the growth into our lives.  We don't feed the root - the root feeds us.  Are you allowing God to place your roots in rich soil, or are you trying to tell God where you should be planted?  I think it is best to allow God to pursue us - we probably don't know the best soil to plant those roots in on our own!