Story by: Megan Leben
“It’s a bit of a religious retreat. You can listen to nature and really soak in the Lord’s glory.”
That’s how Jim Strickland describes Guido Gardens in Metter, Georgia.
Guido Gardens is a small part of a much larger, worldwide ministry started in rural Georgia. The story is one that the religious like Jim and his wife Barbara can only describe as a “miracle.”
A story told on the Sower Ministries website describes how Guido Gardens came to be.
In 1957, Dr. Michal Guido and his wife, Audrey, got in a car accident in Atlanta. On their way back to their home in Metter, after spending several days in an Atlanta hospital, they prayed over how they could serve their Lord more after the scary wreck. They both felt that they needed to start a radio ministry and “A Seed from the Sower” was born. “A Seed from the Sower” became a daily devotional around the world.
The Gardens became the backdrop and studio for these devotionals. The ministry grew and grew until millions of people were listening on the radio to Dr. Guido preach.
Dr. Guido saw how much his devotionals affected people and started a television program and a monthly devotional pamphlet. They also decided to start sending those pamphlets to prisoners after one requested a change of address as he was being moved to a different facility, thus beginning their prison ministry.
“I read the Guido devotionals every day,” Barbara says. “I gift them to friends for their birthdays or holidays and many have come back and asked where they came from. People are always shocked to hear Metter – mainly because most of them have never even heard of Metter.”
The ministry also has a Bible College where they train individuals who want to work in churches but can’t go to traditional Bible College.
The Gardens were started as a religious sanctuary for visitors. It’s as you would imagine a traditional botanic gardens with a variety of flowers and trees, but there are also waterfalls, streams, walking paths and a prayer chapel in the gardens for people “to be quiet and reflect of the marvels of God’s creation” according to their website.
Guido Gardens even has special evenings during December called “Night of Lights” where Christmas lights are put up all over the gardens to celebrate the Christmas season.
“The lights are just beautiful,” Barbara says. “When we lived in Statesboro, we would go multiple times a season to see everything all lit up with Christmas lights.”
According to Guido Gardens’ website, since 1991, nearly two million Christmas lights are put up each year. Light viewers can see anything from an American flag to a 15-foot Statue of Liberty to the 10 Commandments. There’s a manger scene that visitors can stop at and listen to Dr. Guido tell the story of the birth of Christ.
Although Dr. Michael Guido died in 2009, the gardens still flourish, students are still taught in the Bible College, prisoners are still preached to and millions of people still receive “A Seed from the Sower” continuing Dr. Guido mission and legacy lives on.