I was born and raised in a mid-American small town, smack in the middle of a rust-bucket state that has some of the best farm land in all of the United States. I was a 'townie', although there was little, if any, geographical separation from town to country. Growing up, my horizon was small and my perception of a long drive was vastly different then than it is now. Then, a twenty-minute ride seemed a lifetime; now, a twenty-minute drive is the norm, simply getting me from residence to shopping.
My father and mother left the farming life when I was five, moving to 'town' and leaving the agricultural-based, sporadic income behind for factory jobs that at least paid a predictable amount on a regular basis. Some of my family stayed in farming and are still trying to earn a living at it today. I spent large chunks of my pre-college life on my sister's farm, married a young man from a farming family and was thusly familiar with the terminology associated with agriculture. One of my biggest learning moments came in high school when I discovered that 'hundred weight' (as describing white beans in a commodities' report) did NOT mean per every hundred beans, which I had the misfortune to wonder aloud about during a meal with my brother-in-law and his sons.
An equipment term that I remember is the term 'power assist'. I know that it is mechanical in nature and its failure has a negative, domino-effect on the planting and harvesting processes. The power assist feature on equipment is everything and being without it is a deal buster.
Being without Power Assist in life is a deal buster as well. The power of prayer, which is my analogy to human Power Assist, is mighty and formidable. Indeed, there are times when prayer by one needs to be multiplied to the nth degree. I reached that conclusion last night
when we received word that TLV, who has been fighting germs for too many days, had yet another frustrating medical foosball thrown at him. His momma wasn't feeling too swell, either, and I decided it was time for a prayer-Power Assist. My feeble efforts were simply not doing the trick and I called upon friends and family to pray for TLV and his momma.
Will extra prayers help? I have to believe that they will because that is the nature of belief.
There are times, in our lives, when our prayer concerns are almost too overwhelming for one to comprehend and that is when a Power Assist is warranted. It is as if I've added more tractors to pull the combine through the fields.
I feel better already. I hope that TLV and his momma will, too.
Ancora imparo
