where are your roots?

I think it's so amazing how trees can grow on a hillside. Driving to our church's associational Christmas lunch this afternoon and having a bit of "mind-wandering" going on made me look out the window (someone else was driving) and think about trees. It's all about the roots, isn't it? I came home and was on biblegateway.com searching "root" for the parable of the sower and the seed, but found this text in Jeremiah that stood out to me even more so.

5 This is what the LORD says:
"Cursed is the one who trusts in man,
who depends on flesh for his strength
and whose heart turns away from the LORD.

6 He will be like a bush in the wastelands;
he will not see prosperity when it comes.
He will dwell in the parched places of the desert,
in a salt land where no one lives.

7 "But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose confidence is in him.

8 He will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit." (Jeremiah 17:5-8)

Trusting in someone else doesn't always work. Inevitably, since no wo/man is perfect, you will be let down. I know sometimes as wives it's easy to look to our husbands and expect them to fulfil all of our needs, emotionally, etc. That sure is a lot of pressure for them. Sometimes it's also easy to expect the church to fill all of our spiritual needs. Going once or twice a week to "fill up the tank" on spiritual stuff for the week is not enough. Vs. 8 gives the picture of a tree being satisfied of it's need for water. Being close to the water allows it to steadily receive water. The outcome of that steady "drinking" is green leaves and fruit. The same goes with us, being close to our ultimate source of water, the living water. When we seek the Lord daily by reading His Word and praying, we are satisfied and nourished. Our lives will then bear fruit. When "heat" or "drought" come we will be ready because we are spiritually filled.