The Tree That Changed the Way I See Life

Two Directions of Growth

I have walked past thousands of trees in my lifetime — as a child, as a businessman, as a husband, as a father, as a farmer. For most of my life, a tree was just a tree. It gave shade. It produced fruit. It stood silently through every season. Then one day, standing on my farm in Kerala, I looked at a tree differently. Not because it had changed. Because I had.

A tree never grows in just one direction. It grows in two. While its branches stretch towards the light, its roots push deeper into the darkness. One half reaches for the sky. The other disappears into the earth. That moment stopped me in my tracks, because I realised that's exactly how God grows people.

The World Obsessed With Branches

We live in a world obsessed with branches. Social media celebrates visibility. Success is measured by followers. Leadership is measured by titles. Influence is measured by applause. Everyone wants the fruit. Very few are willing to grow the roots. And perhaps that is why we often misunderstand God's work in our lives — we assume that because nothing is visible, nothing is happening. But some of God's greatest work is invisible.

What Looking Back Revealed

I've lived in different countries. Built businesses. Experienced success. Made painful mistakes. Lost things I thought I could never lose. Started again more than once. There were seasons I questioned everything, seasons when life made little sense. At the time, I thought God was delaying my future. Today, I believe He was strengthening my foundation — because if He had given me today's calling with yesterday's character, I may not have been able to carry it. The deeper the roots, the greater the weight the tree can hold. The same is true for our lives.

How This Changed the Way I Build

Looking back at those seasons reshaped how I approach everything I build today.

For years, education has focused on filling minds with information. But information alone rarely transforms lives. Real transformation begins much deeper — it begins with identity. When identity changes, decisions change. When decisions change, habits change. When habits change, lives change. The fruit always follows the roots. English is a tool. Artificial Intelligence is a tool. Money is an outcome. Leadership is a responsibility. But identity — identity is the root. Without healthy roots, every success becomes difficult to sustain.

The Hidden Work of Growth

Jesus spent nearly thirty years in preparation before three years of public ministry. David learned to worship in lonely fields before he ruled a kingdom. Joseph endured the pit and the prison before the palace. The Cross came before the Crown. God has never been in a hurry to grow branches. He first grows roots.

How Deep Are Your Roots?

Perhaps that's why your waiting season feels uncomfortable. Perhaps that's why the answers haven't come as quickly as you hoped. Not because God has forgotten you, but because He loves you enough to prepare you for what you're praying for. The next time you walk past a tree, don't just admire its height. Ask yourself: how deep are my roots? Because storms don't reveal how tall a tree is — they reveal how deeply it is rooted. And maybe the season you thought was burying you is the very season God is planting you. The strongest people in the world are not those with the biggest branches. They are the ones with the deepest roots.