It seems like hard things come in threes, doesn’t it? That’s what happened to me last spring. One of my children needed expensive jaw surgery. Another child was about to lose a college scholarship. And my mom was in the hospital with an unexpected and serious recurrence of cancer.
Needless to say, I felt a bit overwhelmed. Like many leaders, I’ve discovered difficulty in asking for—and receiving with grace—help and support. In other words, I’m great at handling your crisis, but not so great at handling mine. But at this moment, I desperately needed the prayer and encouragement of my godly friends and church family. I needed reminders of God’s faithfulness. And He provided.
A missionary friend called to ask how he could pray for me. So I did what I call a “blurt” with this friend—filters off, I just blurted out everything that was going on. Then I immediately regretted it. How could I share that I felt like I didn’t trust the Lord when I know He is trustworthy? How could I feel like I don’t know what to do? How could I quit running around inside of my head screaming? How could I whine to my dear missionary friend when he serves people who are really in need in Africa?
His response was full of the Lord’s compassion and wisdom. “I am looking forward to seeing how the Lord grows your faith,” he said. Those simple words brought me such peace and reminded me of God’s abundant provision.
I can trust Him. He has been faithful in the past, He is faithful in the present, and He will be faithful in the future—even if His ways aren’t ones I would choose. This is how He grows my faith.
Fast forward to this fall. The evidence of God’s faithfulness and generosity is all around me. The jaw surgery became more affordable. We could pay my daughter’s college tuition, even without the scholarship. And while my mom’s diagnosis is terminal, she’s feeling well and we are making the most of our time together.
Has He grown my faith, as my friend said He would? Absolutely. Now we’re entering my favorite time of year: the giving months. As a small business owner, I’ve committed to giving away as much as my profit as possible. Just like His answers to prayer, this is another way God uses to teach me about His provision.
And because of His faithfulness to me over the course of this year, I give in thankful response to His generosity. Rather than feeling overwhelmed, I am excited, humbled, and honored that He can use me to help people hear about Jesus, receive food, find a home, and get much-needed healthcare. I want to grow my giving as I grow in my faith in a great and mighty Lord.
