Read your Bible, Pray every day
Pray every day
Pray every day
Read your Bible, Pray every day
And you will Grow, Grow, Grow
And you will Grow, Grow, Grow
And you will Grow, Grow, Grow
Read your Bible, Pray every day
And you will Grow, Grow, Grow
Have you ever heard this children’s song? I have now heard it in two different countries and at least 5 different languages. The first time I heard it was at our care point in Swaziland. My friend Carmen and I traveled there on our off day with our ministry partner Leo and two of his friends who were visiting from the Netherlands. Carmen and I started to play and sing with the kids. There were probably close to 50 pre-school aged kids with us. The teacher had the kids sing this song in English. Then the magic happened. The ladies asked if the kids could sing it in their native language. So the teacher had them sing again, but this time in Saswati. After they were done the ladies and Carmen sang the song in Dutch. It was so cool to see one song, with such a powerful message sung in 3 different languages!
Later on that week our whole team traveled to our care point. It was about an hours drive from where we were staying. We usually traveled with 9 to 10 people, and so we did not all fit into the car. This meant that 3 or 4 of us had to sit in the trailer. I found that I really enjoyed traveling this way. As we sped down the road this song came to mind.
One of the first things we found out when we got to Swaziland is that they have been in a drought for over a year. This was quite evident. September should be the start of their spring time. However, we didn’t see much in the way of fresh green plants, not the way you do in the U.S. during spring time. It was very brown and dry out. However, there was one exception.
One of Swaziland’s main crops is sugar cane. As you drove along you would see patches of bright, green sugar cane fields. It was evident that the farmers took great care of these fields. We would often see the giant sprinklers out watering the plants. These bright, green fields were in direct contrast to the the dry, brown vegetation that surround them.
As I sat in the back of this trailer, looking at all these sugar cane fields, I couldn’t help but think about my walk with God. When I take time each day to read my Bible and talk to God, my relationship with Him grows. I have to be like the farmers and take care of my relationship with Him. If I don’t take care of my relationship with Him, it begins to wither and die. It’s such a simple song. A simple message. But so powerful!.
How often do we allow life to get in the way of our relationship with God? For myself I find that it is really easy to play the ‘I’m to tire to get up early and read my Bible card’ or the ‘it’s been a long day and I just want to relax card.’ Life has been kind of hectic this month, and it’s so easy to keep saying, ‘I’ll have my quiet time tomorrow.’ But the truth of the matter is, it should be the most important part of my day. If the sugar cane farmer decided not to water his field and kept saying, ‘I’ll get to it tomorrow,” then his crop would slowly start to die. The same thing happens with our relationship with God. I find that when I’m in the word daily, I feel refreshed and more peaceful. When I talk with God, I have more joy. God want’s us to enter into a relationship with Him. He cares for us so much, and wants to see us grow.
So I just want to encourage you all to ‘Read your Bible, and Pray Everyday.’
