“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.”
Colossians 3:1–3 (NIV)
Rarely do I notice the roots of a tree unless my feet stumble over them. I may notice the way branches above me cut across the sky as I pull out of my driveway. I may sit with my children in the shade or pick apples at an orchard with them in early autumn. I may roll a newly fallen leaf between my fingers. But most of the time I walk unaware right over the roots, the hidden life of every tree that makes everything else—branches, shade, fruit, and leaves—possible at all.
In the same way, it is often the obvious and tangible accomplishments of our days that get most of our attention. Noticing the roots, much less tending to them, seems secondary when there are branches to climb and fruit to pick. We live for what is right in front of us while God is ever so gently calling us toward the unseen. His unseen.
We come alive in the unseen.
We were made for it.
We are formed in it.
I’d spent most of my twenties with a similar lack of awareness in my relationship with God. Noticing and tending to my roots—my inner and hidden life with God—seemed secondary when there were important ministry branches to climb and spiritual fruit to produce and pick. So I focused all my time and energy on branches and fruit, while God was ever so gently inviting me to back to the soil. To hide in him rather than perform for him—to shift my attention from branches to roots, from my visible work for God to my unseen life in God.
Reflect:
Read Colossians 3:1–3. Do you tend to make this same mistake: focusing on “fruit” or “branches” rather than the roots of your faith?
Pray:
Pray through Colossians 3:1–3, inviting God to shift your perspective and priorities.
While we pray for peace, we need moral clarity about this war.
A Christian reconciliation group in Israel and Palestine warned that war would come. Now the war threatens their relevance.العربيةFrançais
Eastern Orthodox poet Scott Cairns reflects on his new collection, his journey of faith, and poetry’s capacity to apprehend inexhaustible realities.
