Yesterday’s post “How to Kill the Old Self”, which advocated the spiritual equivalent of “horticultural homicide” by neglect and starvation, elicited a response from another faithful DWOD subscriber.

She wondered about the value of killing a plant simply by pulling it out by the roots, i.e. “the prayer/counseling approach.”

Great point, Susanna! Thanks for bringing up this vital method that is used widely across the Body of Christ to bring about healing and restoration to many.

Sulojana and I can attest to the effectiveness of this approach after spending 15 hours of intensive ministry through prayer counsellors Daryl & Lynn Hovey using the RTF (Restoring The Foundations) model nearly two years ago.

It was one of the best investments of time and money we have ever made, as we allowed the Holy Spirit to help us pull out bitter roots (Hebrews 12:15) that we had allowed to grow in our spirits (among other things). The freedom we experienced was priceless!

At the end of the Healing Week, they sent us home with some specific instructions on how to maintain this freedom and keep the enemy’s access points glued shut for good.

I must admit that I have not always faithfully stuck to the follow-up process. Consequently, I have been sensing the need for more prayer ministry in the very near future.

The Holy Spirit brought some revelation about how subsequent sessions could be even more effective when I made a casual observation in the process of cleaning up our yard yesterday.

I noticed that the same noxious weeds which had protested violently to being uprooted while they were still flourishing came out with nary a whimper once they had been famished to death!

In other words, even in the natural, it is easier to pull out a dead plant by the roots than a live one!

Makes me wonder what would happen if I were more intentional about neglecting and starving my old self to death. At the next prayer/counselling ministry session, would whatever remains be pulled out by the roots with less difficulty…and more completely?

What do you think?