Recently, as I was working in the garden, it came to me that walking round a garden can help our intercessory prayer.
There is lawn – a place of little interest but where everything happens – where children play and grown ups sit. In the same way there are many ordinary places which do not look much but are vital for our lives, our recreation and our health. We thank God for those places where things are always happening in the busyness and ordinariness of life
There are flower beds and borders – places that look very pretty yet hide the amount of work needed to keep them looking wonderful. So we pray for all those who work behind the scenes in our society to keep the wheels of life turning so that all we take for granted runs efficiently.
There is often a place of disaster – where nothing will grow or where mice and slugs have eaten what was planted and all the hard work seems wasted – places where the soil is infertile or a heavy useless clay. So we pray for the places where life is hard where people are struggling to make a life for themselves against the odds. (The floods in Pakistan are the latest example of human life being shown in all its vulnerability against the forces of nature) We pray for people facing hardship and danger in their everyday lives and that we and others may find ways to help them. There are people we know who find life a struggle against the odds through illness or circumstance and we remember them and pray for them.
The is a compost heap – an unpleasant smelly place which is nevertheless essential for the life of the whole. We pray for the parts of life that are unpleasant and which people usually ignore but which are essential for the balance of nature.
There is the vegetable bed – where plants are grown for what they can provide for the table so we pray for all those involved in production of the essentials of life such as food and water. We remember that what we take for granted is a luxury in other parts of the world.
There are weeds and pests – things that we don't want around, that ruin the nice things we try to do. So it is in our world: there is so much that makes us often feel our efforts are overwhelmed. We work to build things in a new way and find that there are those who get pleasure by destroying the good things that people do. Help us not to get discouraged by this and continue to work for justice, peace and sharing and the coming of Gods kingdom in the world
And there is the shed where the tools are kept – a place of quiet order – equipping us for service. So we pray for those who serve others, those who lead and those who administer that they may act fairly and for the common good.
The garden is a place where we go to relax. So we pray for the times we have to recover and recharge our batteries. We remember all those who are away on holiday at present preparing themselves for the busyness of the autumn.
That the garden is a microcosm of our world, a place of beauty and a place of utility, a place of order and a place of chaos, but most of all a place to both work and play.
We bring all these aspects of our lives, our society our church and our world to God in prayer in the name of Jesus.. Amen
I like it. :)
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