“The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” James 5:16 KJV
Today I saw two roadrunners dart out from the brush and back in. I was touched to see that there were two of them as usually I only see one. That launched me into praying for marriages. There is one couple very close to me who are in crisis after 22 years of marriage. Yesterday, there was a truly hopeful report, which set my heart leaping with gladness and joy for answered prayer.
I HATE Snails!
My mind went to the fact that roadrunners like to eat snails. Several years ago when snails and slugs were consuming my newly planted garden, I bemoaned the situation and asked the Lord why “on God’s green earth” He made them? As for me, they aren’t any good at all except to eat with lots of butter and garlic. Of course! Snails and slugs are part of the food chain. So, Lord, why have you blessed me with so many?
We have a local roadrunner that only visits sometimes. I sure wish he’d stay longer!
Did You Know
about snails…
- Most land snails eat plants and other vegetation.
- Snails also eat algae and decaying matter and are an important part of the food web.
- A garden snail has thousands of tiny teeth.
- Thousands of tiny teeth are located on a ribbon like tongue and work like a file and rip the food to bits.
- Snails can gnaw through limestone.They eat the little bits of chalk in the rock which they need for their shells.
- Some varieties of snails can destroy whole orchards and gardens when there are large groups of them.
about roadrunners…
- Well-adapted to arid habitats, the greater roadrunner has glands near its eyes that it uses to secrete excess salt.
- It can survive without drinking water, as long as it consumes prey with high water content. The roadrunner’s diet includes insects, birds, lizards, snakes, gophers, mice, and a variety of fruit, all of which it finds on the ground.
- Occasionally two birds will hunt cooperatively to bring down larger snakes.
- It is an opportunistic bird, sometimes seen waiting near bird-feeders for prey to arrive.
- Though it spends much of its time on the ground, roadrunner nests are usually 3-15 feet above the ground in trees, shrubs, or cactus clumps.
Intercessory Association
I began to think of the pair of roadrunners as mothers and fathers. Through our prayers over our children and grandchildren, we “eat” the snails and slugs (work of the enemy) off our tender plants. Isn’t it interesting that they also eat snakes! I love the fact that roadrunners are usually 3 to 15 feet above the ground… the nearer to heaven the more productive on the earth!