Unemployed... what will we do? Will God do anything?

My husband and I visited with a couple today. He has been out of work for seven months, his wife lost her job two weeks ago. It was indicated in our visit that they have never been in a position like this before. My heart hurts for them and all of the emotions that they are dealing with right now - fear, anxiety, anger, worry, dread. While I hate this for them, I am excited to watch God work. While a couple has a steady income, a happy marriage, a healthy family there is no cause for their faith to grow. Someone that does not need a miracle will not see one. I look forward to seeing how God will love this family through this experience. I reminded the sweet wife of Jeremiah 29:11. When she lost her job, God did not say "uh-oh". Oh no, He has a wonderful plan for their lives, and all of these circumstances is part of his perfect, orchestrated plan.

I shared with this dear couple a bit of mine and Roy's story...
When Roy and I had only been married a few years we desired to move to Kentucky where my Father was pastoring at the time. We would go visit my parents most weekends and we loved the church and wanted to be more involved. Roy looked for a job, but in this depressed town, there was nothing. One Monday before we headed back home, I received a call asking if I was looking for a job. I hadn't been, but was interested if there was something available. I went on an interview that morning and was hired on the spot to be a bookkeeper for a local clothing store chain (I'm pretty certain that this was before quickbooks, but everything was on computer - ha). Roy and I decided that we would step out on faith and make the move, even though he did not have a job. He met someone in our hometown the week before we left, that told him that a frozen fruit manufacturer was looking for distributors in the area that we were moving to. It was a lead. We packed up everything that we had in the back of Daddy's pick-up truck, a horse trailer, my car and Roy's car and we were off on a "God adventure". We had, at the most, $50. We planned to stay with my parents until we had a steady income.

After we arrived in Kentucky and I started my job, Roy drove to Nashville, TN to meet this company with the frozen fruit products. They indeed were looking to grow their business and would like to have a distributor in the area that we were living. In Roy's mind a company was developed and named on the spot, and we were in business - if this company would give us credit for a load of glorified popsicles. Indeed, they were happy to have us add their product to our distributing company (little did they know that we did not have any active accounts). In an oldsmobile, Roy set out with an ice chest in the back seat filled with frozen fruit to attempt to set-up accounts with the convenience stores in our area. Some convenience stores were large corporate chains, some mom-and-pop shops and some not much more than a bait shop. Roy would walk in, ask for the owner, take the wrapper off the popsicle and hand it over. "When I come by here on my "route" would you like me to stop and deliver you a case of this frozen fruit?" The product was a hit and we were seldom told no. The only problem was, we did not have an ice cream truck. We had to be able to keep this product frozen to deliver it. In our church were car dealers. We were living in the "used car capital of the U.S." with a car auction every week..  Roy told a car-dealer friend that we needed to buy an ice cream truck. "In all of the years I've been going to the car sale, I've never seen an ice cream truck come through."  On late Thursday night, someone pulled into the driveway and blew the horn. We walked outside and there was our friend with an ice cream truck. - Miracle. He told us, "I figured since I've never seen an ice cream truck at the auction, and you needed one, that God must have sent this for you - so I bought it. I hope you like it." God was at work and I don't think we even realized at what capacity until later.  There was one issue with this truck, while it did have an ice cream box on the back, there was no freezer unit to cool the box. I would have to admit that it was probably more of an issue of ignorance than it was great faith, but we were moving forward. While Roy was in another town, probably about 50 miles from our new hometown, he was looking for the headquarters of a large convenience store chain in our area. Not being familiar with anything east of the Mississippi, Roy made a wrong turn and was lost. Turning around on a country road to right his wrong, Roy saw out in a field an old dairy's ice cream truck bed with a freezer unit sitting on top of it. - Miracle. Roy found the owner of the truck and he agreed to sell him the freezer unit and allow him to pay him for it over the next couple of months - Miracle (for those of you opposed to credit, I'm sorry). The unit would have to be installed, and yet another miracle, the man that sold him the unit had a son-in-law that could install it. Over the next week, Roy drove the Oldsmobile hundreds of miles into little towns around our hometown, setting up his accounts. He picked up the first truckload of "popsicles" and had two weeks to get them sold so as to make the payments. I know that the point I'm making is that God provides and does miracles. There are so many things that God did in our hearts while we took a faith-walk and learned to trust on Him. As Roy would deliver that product, he tells that he would bend down on one knee to open up the box before putting the product in the freezer, and he would pray that God would send people into that store to buy our product. We were blessed to sell over $90,000 of "popsicles" that first year -Miracle. We learned to pray and wait. We dealt with disappointment when it seemed that everything was going to fall apart. We learned about giving and making God our partner in business. And, then we learned to let it all go when God called Roy into ministry.  God has a plan.... He always has a plan.

I shared two particular points with the young couple today:

1- God doesn't always answer prayer the way that we think He will. He doesn't always provide the way that we think that He should provide. We may think that we need a job, but, God may intend to provide for us in other ways. You don't have to have a job for God to provide for you. Don't get disappointed in God when He doesn't do things YOUR way. Be careful to not get disappointed in God. Give Him time and space to work all things for your good.

2- Do not make an idol of your problem or your undesirable circumstances. You see, when we think and fret more on our circumstances, we have made our situation an idol in our life. We think more of our self than we do of God. This may be one of the hardest things. Satan must get so much pleasure out of seeing us so self-focused. In this recession, America is so self-focused and selfish that we have no time for God and we certainly seldom put Him in first place. As Christians, we may be in church and even serving, but we are virtually useless because we cannot quit focusing on our self.

Matthew 6 is our reminder that when we seek His righteousness, the other things will be taken care of.

And, to continue mine and Roy's story... "And they lived happily ever after" - NOT! I've enjoyed thinking back at how God did work miraculously in our lives. If anyone is interested in hearing more, I will share if I have any comments asking to do so. It may be that this is an encouragement to someone. It may be that it is just another story and no one really cares :-)

Hurry, hurry! So much to do...

I feel as though the clock is ticking and it is getting louder by the minute. It is a constant reminder that I need to hurry; there is so much to do. Yes, it has even got louder since I began this writing. I confess, I’m used to being in a hurry… I so often run late. I specialize in pulling things together at the last minute, I often procrastinate.

The Holidays are coming up and I will admit that I’ve not bought a turkey, made no travel arrangements, purchased no gifts. I haven’t even made a family Christmas photo, but that isn’t why I hear the clock ticking.

Next week about 25 people will be in my home for lunch. I’ve not written out the menu, not done any shopping. Some pansies should be planted, some pine straw strewn in the flower beds and I would love to sew up the curtains for the windows, a new rug would be great for the living room… but that is not why I hear the clock ticking.

I need to visit my loving family and give them my time. It’s been too long since I’ve hugged that sweet Daddy of mine. We need to sit around the table after a wonderful meal and talk about how good our great God has been.  Right now, there just isn’t time, but that is not why I hear the clock ticking.

My daughters are growing, life is so busy. They’ve outgrown their clothes and their hair needs a trim. The dentist is calling, their teeth need a cleaning, I must get them in. Running here and there, there’s so much to do, but that is not why I hear the clock ticking.  

My Saviour is yearning, He is putting out the call… “Who will go for me? Who will be my voice? I died so that the person you pass in the grocery store can have forgiveness. I bled so that your neighbor can have eternal life.  I had a crown of thorns placed on my head so that the teenagers that live in your county, the ones that seek material goods and sexual pleasure to find satisfaction, so that they will know that I am the only thing that satisfies. I was beaten so that the battered and bruised woman with a broken heart, the one that you just passed on the street, so that she can know that a man loves her and gave His life for her. Won’t you tell her?  I bear the scars so the weak, feeble lady with cancer that is enduring chemo treatment, you know her – you see her at church, so that she will know that by my stripes she is healed. Would you please remind her?  I allowed men to spit in my face so that those who are hurt, bitter and angry can find forgiveness for their soul, you see them every day. Won’t you tell them?” He tenderly says to me, “Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on…But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few. Matthew 9:37

For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.  Matthew 24:38-42

For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. I Thessalonians 4:16-17

The Impact of a Child's Prayer

Recently, I heard an adorable young child pray several times over the course of a few days. The prayer always went something like this…

“ Thank you for this day, help us to have a good day today, help us to have a good night’s sleep, help tomorrow to be good, help everyone be safe, help church to be good, Amen.”

I couldn’t help but hope that as this child gets older that they will be a little more concerned about “others” in their prayer and not so focused on their own desires. I was immediately convicted as I thought about my own prayer life. So often my prayers are self-centered, self-focused and self-deserving.  I come to God with my list of the things that I want for my life. Is it any wonder? I live in a very self-centered, self-deserving world. My generation wants it all, is working to have it all, and blames someone else when they don’t have it all.   So often we’ve reduced our prayer life to a visit with Santa Claus with a mind-set that God is just waiting to hear what kind of new car we want , the new job we'd like, kids not to be sick, money for a vacation, an easy day at work, etc. I definitely believe that we should bring our needs and our desires to the Father. But, it should be in balance. Our own desires and wants should not be preeminent in our life.

I’ve been challenged lately to focus on praying that my life will bring glory to God. Not to just say it, but to mean it from my heart. To pray that my life will bring glory to God today - in the busyness of my day, in my conversations, through Divine appointments, in my phone conversations, the people that I meet. That as  I’m living out my life today that I yield my life to him in my attitude, my actions, my desires and my dreams.  If providing my needs brings Him glory, then so be it. If struggling, hurting, being sick, or having a hard day brings Him glory, then give me the grace to endure it and let Him be glorified in my suffering.  I bring my petitions before the Father; lay out my desires and my dreams, putting all of it in His hands so that He might be glorified.  “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me:” Galatians 2:20.

Jesus told us how we ought to pray in Matthew 6:9-13:

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

I see balance in this prayer. My daily needs are just one aspect in the midst of honoring and praising the Father, desiring His will to be done in this old nasty world as well as praying about my spiritual being and my testimony that He would receive glory from my life.

What does your prayer life look like? Like me, do you find that you are more concerned about what you think you need rather than desiring His will? How would our prayers be different if we approached the throne with the sincere desire for God to be glorified in our lives? Would it change how we act? Would we see people differently? Would we be kinder, more compassionate, and more patient?

My four daughters make for a very interesting life. There is never a dull moment in our home. I cherish the moments when everyone is happy, loving one another and getting along. However, these moments are more seldom than I would like to admit. The reason: they each usually have their own agenda - a plan or a desire that does not fit into the rest of the family’s schedule or budget. Result: Not a very happy child. My response: “This is not all about you. You are not the only one in this family. There are six people here and we cannot always make you happy.” Of course, as a parent, I would love to make all of my children happy. I would love to give them everything that they want, but I can’t and it would not be good for them anyway. We all know that it would create a spoiled, self-centered brat that no one would ever want to be around. I can’t help but wonder how often we come to God with all that we “want” (like a spoiled, self-centered brat) and He says to us, “This is not all about you. There is a whole world out there that needs to see my glory. “

My prayer today is that God will be glorified in my life so that the whole world will know. I will still pray for my sick friends, for financial needs, protection, blessings, etc. But, I will do my best to balance my prayer with praise, honor and adoration; and ultimately desire that He be glorified.