Do You Want to Grow Tall?
Putting Down Roots for Deeper Faith
by Colleen Ingram
On a winding road heading upward into the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, my friend and I pulled over to watch the sunset. My gaze shifted between near and far. Looking into the distance, it was obvious how this range got its name: tree-covered rolling hills layered one after the other in varying shades of blue, appearing lighter and softer in the distance. Up close, I marveled at the forest’s density and wondered how the trees could grow straight up despite the steep incline from which they began.
That’s when the inaudible, yet unmistakable voice of my Heavenly Father whispered, Do you want to grow tall?
I didn’t answer because the question did not seem to require one. Rather, I perceived it as something the Lord was going to do in my life if I was willing to let him. I didn’t know exactly what he meant, but I knew his question was not meant literally. (I’m barely five feet tall and well beyond my years of physical growth). One immediate takeaway from that moment was the general knowledge that for a tree to grow tall, it must have strong, deep, healthy roots.
That poignant moment happened several years ago. Early on, I zeroed in on the idea that the question had something to do with my work or how the Lord might use me in leadership. I had various roles and assignments during that time, but the goals I wanted to achieve did not come to pass. Still, that whisper remained as an open tab in my mind. Each time I asked God about it in prayer, he simply repeated the question: Do you want to grow tall?
Through this ongoing exchange, the Holy Spirit did some work beneath the surface, decomposing my selfish ways and sprouting new shoots of simple faith. He was teaching me to focus less on the accomplishments the world could see and more on the inner strength that he was building within me. Growing tall isn’t about leading; it’s about being faithful and following him.
Drink Deeply
The root system of a tree is meant to absorb water and nutrients and to carry them to every branch and leaf. Just like the roots of a tree, we must also constantly take in water—not only the ice-cold kind in our steel mugs—but the kind that truly leads to life!
Growing tall isn’t about leading; it’s about being faithful and following him.
In the gospel of John, Jesus identified himself as the source of living and eternal water to a Samaritan woman he encountered at the well (see John 4:14). He had stopped to ask her for a drink of water in the hot midday. This woman, who had been shunned and scorned by her own community, gave Jesus a drink, and they engaged in conversation. She was perplexed as to why a Jewish man would interact with a Samaritan woman, a violation of Jewish cultural and religious norms at that time.* Jesus told the woman to focus less on filling her clay jug and instead to drink of the water he offered so that she would no longer thirst.
In John 4:14, Jesus says, “Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (ESV).
The woman was even more perplexed by this thirst-quenching water he had to offer. Oh, the hours in a day it might save her! After the woman asked where to find this amazing water, Jesus publicly revealed himself as the Messiah for the first time.** She finally understood with whom she was speaking and what he was truly offering.
I love this story because the Samaritan woman reminds me of how sometimes I, too, just don’t “get it” when God talks to me. It also serves as a reminder to fully appreciate that the life-giving God of the universe chooses to have a personal conversation with me.
This encounter offers such a beautiful picture of Jesus in both his humanity and his deity. Jesus, the human, was physically thirsty; yet Jesus, the Son of God, offered true refreshment for the woman’s soul. He offered her eternal life—water for now and for forever.
The Samaritan woman received this gift at the well; we receive it through a personal faith in Jesus Christ and by continually drinking from his Word. Like a tree’s roots that need regular water, we need consistent consumption of Scripture for our own spiritual growth.
Jesus offers true refreshment for our souls—now and forever.
The opening psalm in the Old Testament uses the imagery of a flourishing, fruitful tree as a recipe for faithfulness: “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers” (Psalm 1:1–3).
To thrive in the best of ways: Take in the water that leads to fruitfulness and douses the flames of fear. Stay close to the source, rooted in his Word.
Reach Out
Roots have more roles to play than water intake. By the Creator’s design, they not only go deep, but they also spread wide. Underground, amidst the soil that becomes entrapped in this web of roots, a vast network extends multiple times beyond the measurable diameter of the tree’s branches. This network creates a counterbalance of mass and weight to hold the tree straight and strong when winds blow and storms come. Some species of trees even connect their root systems together, thereby strengthening the entire forest. This underground imagery reflects how we as believers should be connected in community, both for ourselves and for the body of Christ, the church.
In his letter to the believers in 2 Thessalonians, the apostle Paul commends the church for the spiritual strength they have gained through trials. Paul opens both of his letters to the church at Thessalonica with gratitude, love, and acknowledgment of their faithfulness. “We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring” (2 Thessalonians 1:3–4).
We can infer that the recipients of this letter were growing both individually and collectively. Each individual had received the good news of Jesus Christ and decided to follow him and walk in his ways. As they learned more about him and lived out those ways, their personal faith increased along with their outward love for each other. Their connectedness was part of their strength.
The Thessalonians’ faithful response and perseverance in the face of persecution and trials became a testimony of encouragement that Paul could share with other communities of faith. These believers clung tightly to one another and stood firm in their faith in Jesus Christ.
Their example of church unity can fertilize the soil of our own faith as we come together to do good works, motivated by charity and love. Their example also reminds us that we are never alone in personal trials; instead, we are surrounded by communal support.
Point Upward
Fun fact: Look up the definition of the word “statoliths”, and you might be intrigued to learn they are specialized cells at the very tip of the roots that recognize gravity and thus know how to grow down. Statoliths are the reason trees know how to grow upward—they grow in the opposite direction. God is so incredible in his design of creation!
We, too, can stretch in opposing directions, but not in a healthy way. Humans have a tendency toward forgetfulness and self-praise. The stories of the Old Testament show a consistent pattern: God’s mighty work, Israel’s praise, Israel’s forgetfulness, Israel’s self-reliance, God’s discipline, Israel’s repentance. Repeat.
For example, the prophet Amos reminded Israel of what God had done to call his people to repentance. God had cleared a pathway to the Promised Land, but their ancestors had turned their backs on God and had forgotten him. “Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars and who was as strong as the oaks; I destroyed his fruit above and his roots beneath” (Amos 2:9).
The Lord had felled the forest of their enemies so his people could experience his blessing and live in a lush land! But in no time at all, they had forgotten the Lord, even turning away from following him. We are quick to judge the Israelites when we read their stories in the Old Testament, but we are just like them. Too often, I forget to praise God after he answers my prayers. Oh, Lord, I’m so sorry. The cedars of Lebanon that made the holy temple majestic and beautiful were the same ones toppled by the One for whom the temple is made. May we remember that all things come from him.
The statolith cells in a tree’s roots are not the glory and splendor of the tree. No one looks at a cedar of Lebanon and marvels at the tiny, unseen cells. Just the same, I am not the hero of my story, yet too often I desire to make myself so. Oh, that others would look at me and only see the faithfulness of God! That is the glory he desires. To keep myself pointed in the right direction to that end, I have found that a daily habit of prayerful utterance of both praise and repentance is most effective. I P.R.A.Y. every day: Praise. Repent. Ask. Yield. Nothing fancy, but quite powerful.
For many years after that sunset moment in the Blue Ridge mountains, I wanted to know exactly what God meant when he invited me to grow tall. I wanted him to reveal the reel of my life in fast-forward motion—a snapshot of me standing tall and strong. But I had it all wrong. I was focused on myself. I thought it was about me being a tall tree standing out amongst the forest—how I would be bigger, stronger, better. But that was never his plan. He lovingly repeated the question over and over until I came to appreciate it for its own worth. The tree doesn’t boast about its height; it simply grows because that’s what it was made to do.
Trees do not grow overnight. We measure their growth in long stretches of time. Trees inspire wonder in the God who made them. We watch them sway in the wind and withstand storms, and we know from where that strength comes—down deep, unseen but not unknown. Like the trees whose roots go deep for nourishment and reach out to form an unseen network of support, we are deeply rooted to one another in the body of Christ. This is where spiritual growth is forged. Jesus is the one who tends to our roots, deepening our faith so our branches might point toward him. As the giver and sustainer of life, Christ cares ever so much more for you and me. Because I have felt his steady hand, I want to let him ask you the same question I am so glad he posed to me: Do you want to grow tall?
Colleen Ingram is a wife, mom, and kitchen-table theologian devoted to studying and sharing God’s truth. @devotedcolleen
*John MacArthur, “Finding the Water of Life: A Commentary on John 4”, Bible Gateway News & Knowledge, August 6, 2025. https://www.biblegateway.com/learn/topics-themes/commentaries/ water-of-life-john-4/.
**Ibid.
Scripture quotations are from the English Standard Version of the Bible.