Lawrence and I were in the garden one day discussing our corn patch and how much water it needs. We differ in our opinions. We watered the corn, and after 15 or 20 minutes there was a little lake of water in the valleys (I planted our corn in the hills). I stuck my finger into the hill and said, “Look at this! The ground is still dry beneath the top layer of soil, so we still need to water until the water has saturated the hills, so it will reach the roots!” His reply was, “Corn doesn’t need that much water. How do you think they planted acres of corn with no irrigation, relying only on rain? And another thing, they didn’t plant it in hills, it was flat, and the side roots could catch shallow water and survive.” I said “Wow, I bet they prayed for rain a lot more back then than we do now, and I guess I’d better plant in the valleys from now on.”

If you think about it, the people in the old days relied on God for a lot more than we do now, and they asked and received from God a lot more than we do now, too. Back then people would plant their seed, pray and wait, and pray some more!

Zechariah 10:1 AMP “Ask of the Lord rain in the time of the latter or spring rain. It is the Lord Who makes lightnings which usher in the rain and give men showers, and grass to everyone in the field.”   

Back then people read their bibles and believed in God’s Word and you know what? He answered their prayers.

Once people figured out how to irrigate their fields they didn’t need God as much and they quit praying. They quit leaning on God for their sustenance.

Why are we so arrogant that we don’t need Him when things are going well? Wouldn’t it be neat if we prayed a prayer like the one below? 

New King James Version (NKJV) “13 Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people.” 14 And He said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Exodus 33:13-14

Have your children ever turned to someone else for advice, instead of coming to you? It kind of hurts, doesn’t it? It kind of makes us feel that they don’t need us, and/or don’t trust us to give them sound advice. And that hurts. Because we know we love our kids more than anyone else in this whole wide world, and would always do what is best for them, and always protect them, and always feed them and care for them, yet if they turn to someone else instead of us, we feel dejected because we feel like they don’t trust us. Trust is important. It’s something that is built up, and when torn down is difficult to build back up. Trusting God is important to Him. It could mean all the difference in receiving answers to our prayers, or not. 

2 Samuel 22:31 “As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him.”

I know you’re getting the picture of how God must feel about us when we turn to others, instead of going straight to Him for everything we need. God loves us even more than we love our children that He blessed us with. In fact, He loves all of us more than we love each other. We need to trust Him enough to ask His advice and follow it. We need to trust Him to answer our prayers and provide our needs, in His perfect timing, while tithing to our church, according to Malachi 3:10-12.

In the New Living Translation of my bible, the book of John 12, “44 Jesus shouted to the crowds, “If you trust me, you are trusting not only me, but also God who sent me. 45 For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me. 46 I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.” NLT

New Living Translation (NLT) “3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

9 God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure. 10 And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth.”