Sabbath Rest: What I Learned About Prayer While Raspberry-Picking

"When God's promise has grown in the fertile ground of a faith-filled heart and reached the time of maturation, it will come to pass. It will be a direct result of the presence of God and not of human power." I got that quote right when I needed its reminder and right when I could see the analogy in my recent berry adventure. Black raspberry season is full blown right now, and the Berry Man on his four-wheeler tootling around the You-Pick farm explained how to get the biggest, ripest ones: "You'll see black ones on top, but those will be dry and not too tasty even if they are ripe. If you lift and pull back the canes, you'll see fat juicy berries hidden underneath. These are the ones you want." "But the canes do have thorns, right?" He looked askance at me. "Oh, yes. But be careful, and if you get stuck it won't really hurt you." So I put my little green quart box on the ground and reached to lift the canes. I'm one of those who will endure a little risk for the sake of fat, juicy berries.