Root Crops: The Ones that Grow in Secret
5th July 2024, 14:36
Do you ever secretly ask yourself this question “Am I ready?” “Am I really ready for the next phase of my life?” This question spans various parts of our life. A few examples: “Am I ready to leave my corporate job and become a full-time entrepreneur?” “Am I ready to be a wife or husband?” “Am I ready to be a mum or dad?” “Am I ready to take this pay cut?” The list is endless.
I was enjoying my quiet time with God and I asked that very question: Am I ready? Am I really ready? Ironically it wasn’t a question I vocalised but was it on my heart so my Father kindly responded: “Yes, you are. You are ready. You’re like a root crop.”
“Root crop?” I responded. It threw me off and I was a little bit confused. What does that mean?
To give some more context let me explain a dream I had a few weeks prior: I was in my house and I looked like I was hiding. I remember someone who represented the Spirit of God whispering “Tumi, it’s time to come out now.” He could tell that I was afraid to be seen. You see God had told me that the time of manifestation for everything I had been praying about for years was about to happen. I had waited and waited and now it’s time and I’m hiding?! Huh?
It sounds wild that I would do that right? Shouldn’t I be with my best garments ready to go? Naturally, yes?! But the truth is when God revealed some* of the things He wanted to do I freaked out. That was what sparked the famous question “Am I really ready?”
But I think the very fact that I questioned my “readiness” is proof positive that I’m carrying a God-given assignment. When He shares at length what He wants to do the truth is: you may never feel fully ready. That my dear reader is the blunt truth. But guess what? We do it anyway!
So what exactly are root crops?
Root crops are crops that grow below the surface for months, perhaps even years, without being visible to the world. All the world sees at the surface are leaves: it doesn’t look like anything is happening to these plants in question. Yet at the time of harvest, the farmer pulls out fully grown crops and people are oftentimes shocked like “where did he/she come from?”
Root crops grow silently undetected for years. Just because people can’t see what’s happening to you doesn’t mean you’re not growing.
When God told me I was like a root crop, He meant that just because people may not be able to see and understand all He’s been doing behind the scenes doesn’t mean that I don’t have anything to offer. He has been working on me in secret. He reminded me that I do have intangible and tangible evidence of growth. It was an eye opening revelation and one that left me teary :’)
So this is where I put the spotlight on you: are you a root crop? Has God been working on you secretly for years and you sense that now He’s saying to you “It’s time to go, you’re ready” but you doubt that you are?
Do you know the beautiful thing about feeling ready and actually being ready? As humans we oftentimes think we know when our moment has arrived because we “feel” ready. But the truth is only God alone knows when we are ready to be revealed, ready for that next step or ready for a promise to be delivered into our hands. How we feel about our readiness is not the most accurate way to discern if we are actually ready.
The Bible also shows this repeatedly. Moses called himself a stammerer. He didn’t feel ready but what was God’s countenance? “You are ready Moses, let’s go!” What about Gideon? He literally said he’s the least amongst his brethren yet God’s angel retorted that “He’s a mighty man of valour.”
How we see ourselves and our readiness is not the perfect indicator of our actual readiness. In my case and in the cases I referenced from the bible I doubted my readiness yet God affirmed it. There have been times in the past where I was wailing that “I’m ready” and God would give me a subtle side eye like… girl? Sit down!
Take a closer look at the image above. Do you notice something about the leaves above the surface? They all vary across the plants but guess what? Beneath the surface they are all fully ripe. My point is this: don’t compare yourself to another person. Your journey may look very different from another but just because your leaves aren’t as tall doesn’t mean you’re not ready.
After the Master plants a seed, waters it, and continuously nurtures it, there comes a time when He wants to harvest those crops. He didn’t plant crops so that He can look from his window and see that he has crops beneath the soil. They were planted to be harvested once ripe. Why? Because the Master has need for them.
Think about if this applies to you in this season and how. For me it was God reminding me that I can’t stay hidden forever. For you it could be that you can’t remain comfortable in your current position because you’re afraid of taking the next step (this applies to me too lol). No matter how we feel there comes a time when God affirms that we are ready and we need to move boldly as He ushers us into our next season.
Here’s a scripture to prick you a lil’ bit:
“A sensible person gathers the crops when they are ready; it is a disgrace to sleep through the time of harvest.”
Proverbs 10:5 GNBUK
You’ve got this!
Tumi
