Growing up in the church, you better believe I learned those 3 famous attributes of God: omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient. So why am I surprised, as I sit down to do my devotions, that He gives me exactly what I need to hear. Here is what I read today:
Matthew 6:25-34
Right on Time
Sometimes you're sure about what God wants you to do, but movements seems slow & hard.
When we were called into the senior pastorate from youth ministry, there were about 6 months when Bill ran his own business. We didn't have a large savings account, & when clients were late paying their bills, we were between a rock & a hard place. I put a list of "needs" on the refrigerator: grocery items, electric bill, gas for the car, etc. Each day I'd pray, "Give us each day our daily bread." I realized that I expected God to provide ahead of time, instead of day by day. I was secure only if I could see money in the bank.
While I believe the Proverbs clearly teaches that the wise save for a rainy day, sometimes life's storms last longer than the savings. I began to pray, "Lord, help me not feel the need, until it is a need." And "God, give me faith to believe You will provide right on time." Some days I prayed, "Just let me go one more day & trust Your provision." I prayed verses like Ps. 37:25: "I was young & now I am old. Yet I have never seen the godly forsaken, nor seen their children begging for bread." And if things felt really tight, "Lord, help me make it one more hour, with my focus on You, not the need!"
I kept a journal of God's provision. The unexpected job that paid cash, the diaper rebate check that bought milk the day we ran out, etc. God provided what I needed right on time.
Right on Time
Sometimes you're sure about what God wants you to do, but movements seems slow & hard.
When we were called into the senior pastorate from youth ministry, there were about 6 months when Bill ran his own business. We didn't have a large savings account, & when clients were late paying their bills, we were between a rock & a hard place. I put a list of "needs" on the refrigerator: grocery items, electric bill, gas for the car, etc. Each day I'd pray, "Give us each day our daily bread." I realized that I expected God to provide ahead of time, instead of day by day. I was secure only if I could see money in the bank.
While I believe the Proverbs clearly teaches that the wise save for a rainy day, sometimes life's storms last longer than the savings. I began to pray, "Lord, help me not feel the need, until it is a need." And "God, give me faith to believe You will provide right on time." Some days I prayed, "Just let me go one more day & trust Your provision." I prayed verses like Ps. 37:25: "I was young & now I am old. Yet I have never seen the godly forsaken, nor seen their children begging for bread." And if things felt really tight, "Lord, help me make it one more hour, with my focus on You, not the need!"
I kept a journal of God's provision. The unexpected job that paid cash, the diaper rebate check that bought milk the day we ran out, etc. God provided what I needed right on time.
Amazing!!! Amazing!!! Amazing!!! A devotional tailor-made just for me!! For those of you who have been keeping in step with the "Great Adventure," you know that what the author wrote is especially close to my heart. Being a woman, I LOVE security! That's just the way we women are wired. It's not a bad thing . . . it just means that letting go & letting God is a bit more of a challenge. I completely identify with wanting the need met BEFORE it becomes a need. But sometimes it doesn't work that way . . . & that's okay. Because while I'm holding one small vague puzzle piece, God -- the Author & Perfecter of my faith -- sees the whole puzzle. He knows how every piece fits together. I may think I'm looking at a dark, ominous rain cloud; when, in reality, it is the center of a beautiful flower!
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