Sunday, Dec 2, 2012
Garza County News

Photo by Jim Plummer

Pastor Scott Richards, First United Methodist Church, Post

Miracle Prayer Growth

Published June 6, 2012 @ 6 a.m.

Several weeks ago I did an article that spoke of rain being to a plant what worship is to our spiritual lives.  I make no claims to that being a perfect analogy but it is certainly true that even desert plants will go dormant without rain and our spiritual lives become dormant without worship.  So I thought I would continue with that analogy a little further only this time I thought we would speak about prayer instead of worship.

I love to garden.  I like watching the plants grow.  Several years ago I discovered miracle grow.  I actually had known about Miracle Grow for a while but I had never used it.  One day in Sam’s Club I saw an entire box full of Miracle Grow Packets for about half the price of buying it all separately.  I can’t pass by a bargain so I bought the box and feeder to go along with it.  I went out to feed the garden not long after that. 

The garden had been doing okay.  I had fertilized the garden when I planted and I had kept up a regular watering schedule.  The plants were coming along nicely.  I watered them fairly well with my new plant food and the left the garden for the day.  A couple of days later I returned to put water on the garden.  I was amazed!  It seemed the plants grew a foot overnight.  Using the plant food on a regular schedule I had a very bountiful harvest.  I don’t know if miracle grow is better than any other plant food but it sure was better than no plant food.  I have been using the product ever since.

At the parsonage in Follett there were a few rose bushes.  I know nothing about roses but finding a plant food box formulated especially for roses I took it and gave the roses a feeding according to the directions on the box.  Not long afterwards there were more blooms on the roses than I had ever seen before.  So I said to myself, “Self, if that works with roses I wonder what will happen if you put rose food on okra.”  Well, let me tell you, it grows your okra stalks about twice as thick as they had been.  If you put it on squash you can feed an entire city on a few squash plants.  Anymore it is hard to find rose food without systemic insecticide but if you could, it is great for your garden’s output. 

That’s the way prayer is to our spiritual lives.  A regular prayer life will do wonders for the fruitfulness of your life.  Many people find it helpful to keep a list around to pray for others.  Many use The Upper Room devotionals as a way of practicing a disciplined prayer life.  Others have even decided to fast once a week on a regular basis.  The idea is not that we can work our way into heaven doing these things.  Rather, these things help keep our attention on the things of God.  That way, when God calls, we’re listening.  And God calls much more often than you might think if you do not practice prayer on a regular basis. 

Who knows, your life might really blossom if you began to pray regularly.

 
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