Colossians 2:7(NLT) “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.”
Dear Heavenly Father,
You are glorious in every way! We give You all the praise, Heavenly Father, for truly You are worthy of all glory, praise, and honor! Thank You for giving us the example of Jesus Christ to show us the way to please You. Thank You for also giving us the institution of marriage so that we learn more about Your nature. Marriage teaches us about Your desire for a family. It also teaches us about Your love and Your desire to bless us in Christ through our spouses.
Family is incredibly important to Your plan for the entire universe. In Ephesians 1:9-11(NLT), You revealed Your plan for making us a part of Your family through Jesus Christ. This passage says, “God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure. And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth.” Many people have decided they can skip Your plan to bring us all under the submission and leadership of Christ. They leave it out of their pursuit for marriage and relationships altogether, and they totally dismiss the humility and spiritual maturity You require. This kind of attitude and thinking leads to many hiccups and mishaps. It is the reason that so many are heartbroken and disappointed with their results.
The example of Christ must be first in all we attempt to do, and this is especially so when it comes to our desire for marriage. You tell us in Colossians 2:7 that we must let our roots grow down into Christ so that our lives are built on him. Only when we do this will our faith grow strong in the truth we have been taught. This means that when we begin thinking about marriage and develop a desire for it, we are not to take matters into our own hands, because that could prove catastrophic, and many of us have experienced this firsthand. Instead, You require us to let our roots grow down into Christ so that we know Your plan for our marriages and for our entire lives.
You created every plant, tree, fruit, and vegetation that exist. You have designed the roots of many plants and vegetation to be underground, where they are not readily visible. Underground is where they receive their nourishment, and You want this to be an example to us. Our roots are internal, and like many plants, they are not visible either. Internally is where our roots must be nurtured, and we nourish them by putting Your Word into our minds and hearts. This is something we must do for the rest of our time on earth. It is what keeps us spiritually strong, and ensures that in Christ, our marriages can withstand and be victorious over any plot or trick of the enemy.
As the roots of plants are being fed, the growth is not seen inside the dirt, the growth is witnessed outside as the plant thrives and blossoms to full bloom. No one has to go to the plant and say, “Are you okay, Mr. Plant? Do you have all you need to produce fruit or beautiful blooms?” No. We don’t have to ask those questions of the plant because its well-being is evidenced outwardly. We can see its vitality and growth with our own eyes. How wonderfully You have designed nature, Heavenly Father, so that it teaches us the spiritual lessons we desperately need to learn.
Our failure to let our roots grow down into the living water of Jesus Christ by nourishing them with Your Word means that we will not be as strong in faith as we should be. This isn’t what You want for us. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that we can’t please You without faith, but when You are our priority, we will not cease to grow in our knowledge of You, because we will have made pleasing You our greatest joy. Please help us to understand, Dear Father, that the blessings we desire most will chase us down when our roots are strong in Christ.
You said of Abraham’s faith in Romans 4:20-21(ESV), “20 No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, 21 fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.” This is where we must be when it comes to being fully persuaded in Your promises. Our faith is what brings You glory! When we have no doubt in our minds as single people of faith that You are going to bless us with the right person, we will not worry about their job title, what they drive, how much money they make, or the clothes they wear. Our knowledge of Christ will have caused us to spiritually mature way past those things. We will know with all our hearts that You have taken care of all the details, and Your stamp of approval on the person is all that is needed.
When we are committed to grow in Christ, You’ll make sure we don’t miss our blessing. Our future spouses will smell the aroma of our spiritual bloom and will be drawn like a magnet to the Christ in us. Thank You for the gift of Jesus Christ and thank You for helping us to become spiritually prepared for the blessing of marriage. We desire to please You, and we desire Jesus Christ to be the head of all we seek to do. Thank You for Your many blessings in his powerful name. Amen.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV), The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
“Roots Deep and Growing in Christ for Marriage”, written by KLizzie for Springfield Fellowship, Inc. © 2022. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
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