I also pray that love may be the ground into which you sink your roots and on which you have your foundation. This way, with all of God’s people you will be able to understand how wide, long, high, and deep his love is.
Ephesians 3:17–18
A tree gets much of what it needs for life from its roots. And its roots grow proportionate to the soil they’re in: in shallow ground plants grow low and weak, and in deep soil they grow tall and strong.
Where you sink your roots will determine how much you grow. Sink your roots in the shallow soil of the world, and your growth will be stunted. Because the world doesn’t know love, it can’t feed your soul or give it life in abundance. But a life buried in the soil of love will blossom and grow into an impressive and strong life, unshakeable in strong winds and able to protect anyone who comes under its impressive branches. Right now you are just a sapling, but one day you will be a mighty oak. Right now you are sinking your roots deeper and deeper, searching for rich soil, digging for water and nourishment from the love of God. The more you drink of this love, the more you ground yourself in it, and the more you offer it as shade to others, the deeper your roots will grow and the more unshakeable you will become.
The girl who has her life’s roots sunk into the ground of love is a girl who is determined to react to everyone she encounters with love. She refuses to allow anyone else’s sin to become her sin. She doesn’t consider bitterness, resentment, revenge, or retaliation to be an option, but instead she digs herself deeper into the meaning of love. She gives while others take. She smiles while others scowl. She forgives while others hate. You, God Girl, will grow strong and become an impressive young woman to those around you when you ground yourself in love and only love. Refuse the world’s standards and live only according to God’s, and your roots will go deep.