Mayre and I counseled a young single mother last night who was struggling financially to provide for her own and her son's needs. She had had some real problems in her life, from growing up times, marriage times, employment times and the single parent responsibility times. Her life had been hard, and the light was still at the far end of the tunnel.
But what struck me in our conversation was not her situation, which was not real good, but her determination to see it through, especially in the raising of her son in the right way. She was trying to do all the right things and give him the example of not giving up in spite of trying circumstances. She was asking for God's help in all these areas of her life. She was looking for advice on how to meet her challenges without shifting her burden onto another person, agency or even the church.
She gave us one incident that had happened to her in church on Mother's Day. She was feeling so low that she did not want to even sit in the service, but found a seat in the foyer where she could see on the monitor what was happening inside. Right by the screen was the offering box, and she felt God saying to her that she should give (even though the message that morning had nothing to do with giving). She had $3 in her pocket that needed to last till the next Friday's payday, but she took it and put it in the box, just obeying God. She said that she had an immediate feeling of release from her worry, and felt that God would indeed be faithful to His promise to take care of her.
From this "widow's mite" experience, she was able to see God meet her needs that coming week in ways that she could not have anticipated. Not only that, but it was a teaching experience for her as she modeled this moment before her son, and a learning experience for the son, as he was able to see first hand the provision of God in their lives.
God does care, and that is one thing you can take to the bank.
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