Common Roots

December 5, 2007

By Gary Rogers

I’ve never seen a redwood forest, but it is on my list of places I’d love to visit. A few people from our church have told me stories of these massive trees and how incredible they are to see. The picture of a car driving through a tunnel bored through one of the trees is one of those special portraits in my mind of wonders to see. Few things would be more fun than riding on a motorcycle through those tree canopy roads and taking in all the sights and smells of that living umbrella.

The California redwood trees may grow to a height of 367 feet and have a width of 22 feet at their base. This would place them about the same height as a 35-story building. These are the tallest trees in the world. The trees can live 2,200 years, and it is very common for one to reach 600 years. The amazing thing about these trees is their root system. The root system is composed of shallow, wide-spreading lateral roots. A redwood standing by itself in an Oklahoma wind like we had last week could easily be blown down. The height of the tree and the shallow root system adds up to disaster and short life for any tree.

The survival instincts of the California redwoods teach us a valuable lesson. You rarely see a redwood standing by itself. Redwoods grow in a cluster and their root system intertwines to build an underground network of cables reinforcing the structure above. It is like a high-rise building with an underground foundation holding it fast even in the strongest winds. It is their unity and support for each other that make redwoods so durable and resistant to outside assaults from the wind.

Wow! Sounds like what Christians should be like.

"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another -- and all the more as you see the Day approaching" (Hebrews 10:24,25, NIV).

I’ve heard people say, “I don’t need those people down there at that church. I’m better off without them.” But when the wind of adversity blows, it is sure good to have someone else’s roots intertwined with yours to help you stand against the tornados of life.

-- Gary Rogers is senior pastor of First Assembly of God in Coweta, Okla.