"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord's holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." (Ephesians 3:16-19)
Since coming to Copenhagen, I have been continually reminded how my dependency on the love of Jesus is utterly essential. And not just for the ministry's sake, but for my own. Over the last couple months, I've been thinking about what Paul wrote in his letter to the church in Ephesus - what it means to be rooted & established in the love of Christ. There are so many things I can base my identity or value in: my performance, my relationships, my talents, my circumstances, my work in the ministry. But all of these things can change just as quickly as Danish weather in a single day (and let me tell you, that's pretty fast).
Often times, we are looking at what life can bring us or how we can bring an impact to the world around us. We tend to focus more on the “fruit” and less on the “roots”. But, I would argue that what, or rather who we are rooted in matters more than what we want to produce.
"What, or rather who we are rooted in
matters more than what we want to produce."
Jesus said that He came to bring us abundant life, one with "lasting fruit". And that abundant life comes with deep, healthy roots. Banning Liebscher, founder & lead pastor of Jesus Culture, wrote in his book Rooted, “lasting fruit only comes through the long journey of putting our roots down deep in Jesus. Without deep roots, there is no fruit, and if there is fruit, it’s not the kind that lasts.”
As I think about the vision of student ministry in Denmark and the ways I want to see God move here, I am continually reminded that my roots in Christ's love are the most vital part.
Apart from Him, I can do nothing.