“It will always look little but it will never run out.” (Steven Furtick)
Finances. Food. Faith. Sometimes our provisions — physically and spiritually — could seem meager and dangerously running low. I have found myself in situations where I thought there will be none left when I wake up the following morning. Would I still have money for subway fare next week? Would I have enough for one meal the following day? Would I have the ability to pay rent next month? Would my faith hold? How long before my peace runs out and chaos sets in? How long before my trust in God is irrevocably broken? But though my pantry only had one can of corned beef left in it, somehow I didn’t die of hunger; though I questioned God every night, somehow my relationship with Him survived that difficult season.
When you are scraping the bottom of the barrel and trying to conserve whatever you have left, hope threatens to let go of the already flimsy thread it’s hanging on to. Despair is a natural reaction to adversity. It’s what millions of people are dealing with at present as a result of this COVID-19 pandemic. The loss of jobs are threatening families’ abilities to feed their children or keep the houses they’ve worked their entire lives to build. It’s a valid concern and the fear and anxiety felt by these families are as real as the noonday sun.
We could pray for them and encourage them with the truth that God has promised to SUPPLY all of our needs; how He sent ravens to bring bread to Elijah; how He kept the Israelites alive in the desert for 40 years by giving them manna and quail; how He fed 5,000 people by multiplying 2 fishes and 5 loaves of bread; and how He caused a widow’s supply of flour and oil to never run out. Prayer and encouragement are important and sufficient because God is powerful; but if we are able, we can be the ‘ravens’ God uses to bring them bread; we can be the reason they survive another month of this pandemic by giving them ‘manna and quail’. We may not be able to give them much, but God is able to multiply the two fishes and five loaves we give them.
Someone I know sets aside a portion of his income for something he calls a ‘benevolent fund’ — a pool of finances he draws from whenever someone approaches him with a need. He said that this puts him in a position to give whenever it’s necessary. The first time he told me about this, I cried (in secret, of course). I cried because how many of us have thought about this? How many of us are concerned beyond our own needs? If he were someone who had bank accounts all over the world such as the likes of Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, or Jeff Bezos, it wouldn’t be as heartwarming because whatever they give is neglible to their bottomline plus they get tax relief out of it. This person I know, however, is just like us — income earners who have enough to live comfortable lives; but unlike most of us, he is willing to be God’s hands and feet in this world that is in dire need of it.
Our generation is starving from one thing: kindness. We go out to the streets to fight for causes we believe in, we post awareness messages on social media, we talk loud, even argue with anyone who is not on board with our principles. I’m not saying these are wrong, but how many of us do the actual work of making a difference in people’s lives? How many of us would respond to a need when we have the ability to do so?
When my resources were dwindling and I found myself at rock bottom, God sent me ‘ravens’. If we all look back, we’d realize He’s done the same thing to all of us one way or another. Someone, somewhere could really use a ‘raven’ right now.
Thoughts Flying On The Wings of Words 