To Win a Riding Lawn Mower...

What would you do to help your best friend’s father-in-law win a riding lawn mower? Last June my friend called and told me that her father-in-law was in a radio station competition to win a riding lawn mower. Radio listeners wrote essays about their incredible father or father figure. The top 20 essays were put online to give the public a chance to vote. Contestants and anyone they could convince were allowed to vote once every ten minutes over a two-day time span before Father’s Day. The five stories that received the highest number of votes would then enter the next phase of the competition – “musical lawnmowers.” You ask, “How is that played?” From what I understand each man was asked to choose a numbered lawnmower. Then someone drew a number and the winner was selected.

I spent two days running to my computer every 10-30 minutes. My housework suffered needless to say, but it was fun to see his numbers climb. I sent emails to friends and solicited votes for a man I’ve never met (but have heard great things about). All of our dedication and hard work got him in the top five. Yippee! He was number one for a while, but a family with eight children stole his thunder during the last few hours of the online competition. But he still had a chance to win… Guess what – he didn’t win.

I committed a lot of time and energy to something so inconsequential… My friend and I both were disappointed when we processed our thoughts after the competition. BUT if I had it to do over, I would do it again because service to others no matter how small shows them that they are valuable. How can application be made to our spiritual lives? Do we regularly stop everything and run to our prayer closet every 10 minutes? I know I don't because I have children to teach and entertain, laundry to fold and dishes to watch, etc. Its not saying that I don’t pray as I think of things throughout the day, but I don’t make a plan to stop everything every ten minutes to go commune with my Savior. A riding lawnmower though very nice is only temporal. Prayer has eternal rewards. Let’s try praying like we want to win a riding lawnmower.

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. Acts 2:42-43

Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:11-12