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Grounded in Love (Ephesians 3:17b-19)
My son and I have a garden, and in our garden we are currently growing squash, pumpkins, watermelons, cantaloupe, tomatoes, and beans – lots and lots of beans! For those of you who are not familiar with gardening, it takes a tremendous amount of time and patience before all of your hard work comes to fruition. This is our second year having a garden and we have so much more to learn.
One thing I do know is this: the better the soil, the better the harvest. It takes hard work to have a garden that produces well. Last year was our first year attempting a garden and I remember that my son had a difficult time watering the garden after just a few days, because he couldn’t see anything happening. I had to keep reminding him to water the garden. Then, he perked up a bit when the plants started to sprout, but again, he lost interest in a few more days because he still didn’t see the benefit of his hard work. Well, after he saw our first squash and beans, he was really excited! After we were able to eat some of them for the first time, I don’t think I had to remind him even once to water his garden for the rest of the season.
My point is this: if we want to have plenty of food to eat, we have to make sure that we have fertile soil and plenty of water. We also need to weed the garden to make sure the plants are not being harmed or starved. Being a godly Christian is no different. Paul prayed that his fellow believers would be “grounded in love,” but what does that mean? Paul means that love is the basis for who we are as Christians. We need to get rid of the distractions this world has to offer and stay completely focused on Christ. If we, as Christians, do not have love, then we are useless (1 Cor. 13). We would be like a garden with poor soil and not enough water. Yeah, we might grow a little bit but as soon as there is a trial or temptation that comes our way, we would be destroyed.
So, how do we become rooted and grounded in love? Love becomes our soil when we think more about others than ourselves. We need to see others as God sees them. In our current social climate, you can see what happens in a society that is encompassed with people who only think about themselves first and not of others. When we think only of ourselves, we will mistreat, abuse, and accuse others with little or no reason. Where does that get us? Civil unrest and everybody pointing the finger at everybody else. What would this country look like if we were rooted in love instead of hate? Just imagine if we started caring for each and building up one another instead of tearing each other down.
If you were planted in a garden, what would your soil be made of? Would it be made up of hatred or selfish ambition? Love is so very important in the life of a Christian that we need to cling to it with all that we have. We cling to it when we spend time not only reading God’s Word but following it as well. If we want to be mightily used by God for His glory and honor, then we need to be fully rooted and grounded in love. What is your soil made of?
– Pastor David Guenin
