A Testimony of God's Faithfulness
This year has started with a lesson in faith and dependance on God.
It was a warn sunny day and my wife and I were enjoying some rare time alone. Just as we climed out of the car Linda's phone began to ring. It was the child-care centre. They had noticed some discharge coming out of our daughter Chloe's ear. It wasn't serious enough for them to send her home but it would probably have to be examined by a doctor. When we collected Chloe and her brother from child-care that night we realised how bad it had become.
Out of concern we rang a free children's medical hotline. After speaking with a nurse and then a doctor, we were informed that Chloe would need to see her GP tomorrow. This presented us with some challenges. This was an expense we had not budgeted for and were currently in a difficult financial situation. Usually in this type of situation we would simply withdraw some money from our special savings account, but tomorrow was new year's day and the banks would not be open, and the account required us to sign in person. To complicate matters further, my parents were out of town so if we were to borrow some money from them we would have to drive out to their caravan, which would put a strain on our already limited petrol reserves. There was no money in the house and the cheque we had recently deposited would not clear until the end of the week.
We lay down on the bed that night praying together. We knew that God loved our daughter, even more than we did. We knew he had promised in the bible to provide for our needs, and we knew that in the past he had proven himself to us many times. We chose to trust God to provide a solution and went to sleep.
The next morning we rang the doctor's surgery and made an appointment for the limited clinic that night, believing in faith that God would help us. There was some money in our normal account, but it was due to be taken out by a direct-debit scheduled for tonight. I briefly considered withdrawing this money and wearing the fee when the direct-debit found insufficient funds. It would work, but perhaps God had a better option.
I sat reading a book about the prayer life of Jesus. As I read and prayed, my thoughts wandered to Matthew 6:26 "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" At the same time, Linda was praying in another room. God said to her "Go look in the rent folder". She immediately remembered that we had some cash set aside, hidden in the rent folder, to pay for steam-cleaning of the carpets at some point in the future when we move out of our house.
We looked in the folder, not remembering how much was in there. It was only five dollars short. We found enough coins in our wallets, Chloe's money box and the glove box of the car to make up the five dollars. God had provided using money we forgot we had.
There are times that I feel I am extremenly undeserving of God's provision and blessing, but as the Bible says "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" Matthew 7:11.
God is definately our provider.
Scripture taken from New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
It was a warn sunny day and my wife and I were enjoying some rare time alone. Just as we climed out of the car Linda's phone began to ring. It was the child-care centre. They had noticed some discharge coming out of our daughter Chloe's ear. It wasn't serious enough for them to send her home but it would probably have to be examined by a doctor. When we collected Chloe and her brother from child-care that night we realised how bad it had become.
Out of concern we rang a free children's medical hotline. After speaking with a nurse and then a doctor, we were informed that Chloe would need to see her GP tomorrow. This presented us with some challenges. This was an expense we had not budgeted for and were currently in a difficult financial situation. Usually in this type of situation we would simply withdraw some money from our special savings account, but tomorrow was new year's day and the banks would not be open, and the account required us to sign in person. To complicate matters further, my parents were out of town so if we were to borrow some money from them we would have to drive out to their caravan, which would put a strain on our already limited petrol reserves. There was no money in the house and the cheque we had recently deposited would not clear until the end of the week.
We lay down on the bed that night praying together. We knew that God loved our daughter, even more than we did. We knew he had promised in the bible to provide for our needs, and we knew that in the past he had proven himself to us many times. We chose to trust God to provide a solution and went to sleep.
The next morning we rang the doctor's surgery and made an appointment for the limited clinic that night, believing in faith that God would help us. There was some money in our normal account, but it was due to be taken out by a direct-debit scheduled for tonight. I briefly considered withdrawing this money and wearing the fee when the direct-debit found insufficient funds. It would work, but perhaps God had a better option.
I sat reading a book about the prayer life of Jesus. As I read and prayed, my thoughts wandered to Matthew 6:26 "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" At the same time, Linda was praying in another room. God said to her "Go look in the rent folder". She immediately remembered that we had some cash set aside, hidden in the rent folder, to pay for steam-cleaning of the carpets at some point in the future when we move out of our house.
We looked in the folder, not remembering how much was in there. It was only five dollars short. We found enough coins in our wallets, Chloe's money box and the glove box of the car to make up the five dollars. God had provided using money we forgot we had.
There are times that I feel I am extremenly undeserving of God's provision and blessing, but as the Bible says "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" Matthew 7:11.
God is definately our provider.
Scripture taken from New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
posted by Adam @ 12:53 PM
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