Farmer Angus Buchan’s story was first portrayed in his book Faith Like Potatoes, and then more recently in the locally produced film of the same name. His farm outside Greytown, KZN, recently hosted the Mighty Men’s Conference where 7 000 men, many of whom are farmers, spent a weekend listening to him, and where he shared his plan to go to Australia to pray for relief from that country’s drought.
You will not make it without faith. In the spiritual realm faith is like money. It is this faith that has brought me through the difficult times as a farmer and as a man. If I didn’t have this faith to carry me through the many terrible challenges that I have faced in my farming life, such as drought, runaway fires, and the terrible death of a family child, I would most likely not be standing in front of you today.
Both Christians and non-Christians constantly face challenges to their happiness and prosperity, but the difference is that Christians will never give up striving to overcome these challenges. They will face adversity through the faith that they have, even if the adversity increases after accepting Jesus Christ into their lives. I’m a farmer and I’ll die a farmer. I see God’s creation every day. Think of a calf being born and then cleaned by its mother. Within a short time, this calf will know exactly where to go for a drink of milk. Ask yourself, “How does a calf know this?” The answer is that God taught it.
Don’t be distracted by earthly matters. It takes guts to praise God when the chips are down. It takes guts to praise God when the maize crop is dying, like what is happening to the maize farmers in the Free State. Keep praying to Him. He says in the Bible that when the vines are bare, He will still be there with you. Know in whom you can trust. When God is on your side, know no fear. He is able to grow mealies where there is no rain. I was in the UK when foot-and-mouth disease struck the livestock there. Farmers were despairing and some of them even committed suicide to escape their problems. I met one farmer there who was absolutely down-and-out because of foot-and-mouth and mad cow disease. He was facing absolute financial ruin, but he put his faith in God and was able to survive his problems after receiving financial support from a totally unexpected source.
Keep your faith in God’s will!
Praying for rain in Australia
I am also going to Australia soon to pray for the farmers there who are suffering from the effects of the worst drought in 100 years. I’ve heard terrible stories of the problems these farmers are facing, and many are taking their own lives in despair. It does not matter where you are from; farming can be very difficult wherever you are. The Lord does not have a plan for you to take your own life when things seemingly get too difficult to handle. We are going to pray for those farmers so that they get rain, and you know what? I believe that it’s just going to start raining and raining there after our prayers. Our God is a rainmaker!
Even if you don’t have a bumper crop, be grateful that you will at least have some sort of crop. The saying that ‘n Boer maak ‘n plan (a farmer can make a plan) is not true. It is God who blesses farmers to be able to come up with solutions to their problems. If you have bad debt, go to your creditors and tell them that you will pay what you can and when you can. But be sure to keep your word, and your creditors will begin to trust you and will become patient with you. Never listen to Satan. He is the greatest liar.
Take your failures, and with your faith in the support of the Lord, turn them into successes. God will always pick you up from the gutter if you let Him. He does not hand out gifts at random. He wants to know that you love Him for the Father that He is to you, and not for what He can give you. The wind and the waves obey Him, and He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.
Keep your faith simple, and never think that you are too good and don’t need forgiveness for being a sinner. We are all sinners! If your faith costs you nothing, then it is worth nothing. – Lloyd Phillips |fw
