Some roots grow so deep that we cannot remove them alone, and this often happens without our knowing. If it wasn’t for a gardening group, I would not have found out that this plant had a significant root system that allowed it to survive being pulled over and over again. That was what needed to be dealt with. Not what I saw on the surface. It needed to be uprooted.
Where it was the worst, we hired a landscaping company to remove the grass and soil about a foot down, put down a protective barrier and backfill it with rock. It worked there because we didn’t want to grow anything there. But there were other spaces, like our lives, where we wanted to create beautiful spaces for flowers and other plants to grow and thrive. Digging it all up and burying it under rock was not going to work. Here I had to put in the hard work to find and dig out the root.
I started by removing the perennials I had planted in the space and actually threw them away. Why? Because if any small bit of root from this plant was mixed in with the roots of the plants I wanted, it would just come back. I had to get rid of every bit of the unwanted plant’s roots. Then I started digging. Gently at first, following the delicate roots of what was on the surface back to the big root, and then down the big root to expose it. Not just the top of it, but almost all of it. It was not easy work. The ground was hard. It went from being soil and mud to clay and rock.
You see as you go deeper the soil that looks good becomes harder, it holds things tighter. It doesn’t want to let things go as easily. Have you ever tried pulling a fence post from the ground? It’s not easy. And so are things buried in our hearts and souls. We may not even realize what they are, or that they are even there, like was the case when I followed the delicate roots that pulled out so easily back to the strong root, planted firmly in hard soil. Once I did the hard work of exposing the root so I could see it clearly, I could finally remove it.
We often need the help of trusted believers, counsellors, and the Lord Himself to expose these roots so we can fully deal with them and not just remove the easy surface roots that doesn’t have lasting effects.
God told Jeremiah that his ministry would involve both uprooting and planting (Jeremiah 1:10), this is the essence of gardening. Jesus adds that the Father lovingly prunes fruitful branches so that they may bear even more fruit (John 15:2). Though pruning and uprooting can be painful, they are acts of divine love, making room for new life and greater fruitfulness.
Reflect:
What keeps popping back into my life that I keep having to remove? A thought, a habit, an attitude.
What do I need to help uproot this from my life? What parts of my life need pruning to become more fruitful?
Pray:
Thank you God for the work you have already done in me. I ask you to give me the courage to dig down deep, to allow you to expose those negative roots that keep sending up shoots that take away from what you want to do in my life. Give me courage to seek the wisdom of others who can help me find the roots and deal with them.
Beverly Ajtay
Administrative Support
