By Barbara Johnson (Splashes of Joy in the Cesspools of Life)
Think of a gardener irrigating his garden. He is able to channel life-giving water to all areas except to one little dying plant way over in the corner. The gardener knows that if he had just one more piece of pipe he could run it over to that wilting plant and transform it with new life.
So it is with the Master Gardener. Because He chooses to minister through us, He needs many lengths of pipe to bless persons here, there, and all around. Perhaps in your area there is a drooping, wilting person who needs God's touch right now. Proverbs says, "Anxious hearts are very heavy, but a word of encouragement does wonders" (Proverbs 12:25 TLB).
We can be that extra piece of pipe through which He can channel His cheer, encouragement, and joy to those who need it. Christ Himself set the example of what it means to be a spirit-lifter. On the night before He died, during one of the darkest moments that He and His disciples had ever known in the three years that they had been together, He told them, "Cheer up, for I have overcome the world" (John 16:33 TLB).
Love is the greatest gift we have to give, and if we let Him, God will help us be sensitive to loneliness, grief, and pain wherever it exists-which is all around us.
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A Prayer
One way to be a "pipe" of God's love is to pray for others. Your prayers can bring His love nearer and make His help more available to your loved ones. Here's a sample prayer.
Dear Jesus, I ask You to bless my friends. Each one has a different set of circumstances, joys, problems, and needs, but You can provide for each one.
Where there is pain, give Your peace and mercy.
Where there is tiredness, please give understanding of Your strength, and show these how to tap into that strength by leaning on You.
Where there are difficult decisions to make or confusion or stress, make Your way plain and give everything needed for these to follow where You lead.
Where there is loneliness, I ask You to renew the experience of Your nearness and draw these into greater intimacy with You.
Where there is insecurity or self-doubt, please grant renewed confidence in Your abilities, more faith in You inside each of these.
Where there is fear, please demonstrate Your love and give courage, as we know You can work out any situation for the best.
Where there is something blocking fellowship with You, please reveal the obstacle and take it away-whether sin, circumstances, or lack of faith.
Where there is a need for finances or other provision, please supply as You promised in Your Word, "God will supply all your need" (Philippians 4:19 KJV).
Where there is illness, send healing by Your miracle-working power and give instruction for healthful lifestyles.
Where there is a need for friendship and love, send other believers to fill up the void, as the Bible says, "If we are living in the light of God's presence, just as Christ does, then we have wonderful fellowship and joy with each other" (1 John 1:7 TLB).
Where there is a spiritual emptiness, send Your Word for inspiration, and grant sweet communion with You in prayer.
Whatever the need, please fill it, I ask in Your name, Jesus, as the Giver of all good things. Amen.
