Growing Roots

 Growing Roots

February 10, 2025

Today I want to talk about gardening. When we moved to Texas we started a garden. I’m really not very good at it. There is a good reason I left the farm as soon as I was able to get away! Anyway, we had some success growing tomatoes and cucumbers and had a good crop of potatoes one year. One year, I took leave of my senses and planted turnips. They came as a packet of tiny black seeds which I planted in one corner of the garden. In due time, with some water and sunlight, they started to come up, and grow, and grow. As they began to take over one corner of the garden, I pulled a few to thin them out and the first roots were interesting to eat. It was something different and was something I had eaten as a kid. But as they continued to grow, the roots grew larger and larger We ate a few, but after awhile the bitter taste was just too much to bear. We tried giving them away, but very few people wanted them. In the end, I pulled all the rest up and threw them into the woods, but not even the raccoons would eat them.

So how does this tale relate to our scripture today? Consider Hebrews 12:

Hebrews 12:15

15 See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled;

So if we are to avoid having a root of bitterness, we need to know how to grow such a root. A root of bitterness grows like a turnip. It can start out small and dark, like the tiny black turnip seed. It may be a slight or other offense that sticks in your soul. You may not take much notice of it at first, but over time, if you allow it to sprout and grow, in will take root and get larger and larger. “How could they say such a thing about me! I never did anything to deserve the way they treated me.” You may even water these hurts with your tears, and may it seem like the most natural thing to dwell on these matters. But the more you meditate on these hurts, the more they grow, and eventually they will take root and become a root of bitterness. When fully grown, the writer of Hebrews tells us that they can produce all sorts of problems; depression, anxiety, and even physical illness such as arthritis or heart problems. So what are you to do then?

Fortunately, the Lord has provided a remedy for a root of bitterness.

1 John 1:8-9

8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous toforgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

John tells us that the first step is to acknowledge that we have a problem. A root of bitterness almost always takes hold because we blame someone else for our problems. Now someone may have in fact hurt you, and maybe hurt you grievously, but it is your holding on to the pain and unforgiveness that allows the bitterness to grow. It takes an act of faith, and an act of will, to admit that you have clung to this offense and have been unwilling to forgive. When you repent and confess your part in this and ask for forgiveness , the healing can begin. Asking for forgiveness is not easy, especially if the one who offended you has not repented and asked for forgiveness. But you have to realize that the root of bitterness is not in their heart, it is in yours, and you are the only one who can ask the Lord to forgive your and pull up the root and heal the wound. As John says, “He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness .” 

Once you have been forgiven, and healed, will the relationship with the offending person be restored? Perhaps, but in many cases there can be no reconciliation until the other person comes to the point of repentance themselves. They can be like the pile of rotten turnips in the woods that even the raccoons and buzzards refuse to eat! But their fate is the the Lord’s problem. You must take responsibility for your own sins and ask for forgiveness. Who knows, when your healing becomes evident to all those around, maybe those who have offended will notice and come to the Lord also. You can only continue to pray for them, that they also can ask for forgiveness and have their own root of bitterness healed.