Near the end of my first month in Austria as a missionary, several financial disasters struck us that drained our financial resources. As I sat twirling the last Austrian shilling I had to my name in my hand wondering if I'd have enough money to pay for travel, feed myself, and make it to the monthly deposit, I heard a voice in my mind say, "You will always have enough." I keep that coin in the breast pocket of my suit, and often people will notice me twirling it between my fingers. What they don't know is that I'm doing it because I'm in the middle of a trial reminding myself of God's promise that those who seek Him can count on His help. We don't wait. We dont' trust. We try to do things ourselves. Sometimes we reject His blessings, but when we don't follow Him we certainly have no claim on them whatsoever. Satisfaction is not in things. Yes, when you don't have what you need, it's difficult to find satisfaction, but even Viktor Frankl will tell you that in the Nazi camps it was still possible to keep the faith and trust that God would deliver on His promises. If he could keep faith there, you can keep faith while you wander in your wilderness.
It is natural for people to struggle. Contrary to what you may think, to what social media creates as a perception, the natural and usual course of human affairs is trial. That's because nature tests us to first make sure we are fit and then to strengthen us for tougher challenges. Despite the rosy pictures paraded to Facebook, most people are suffering from something even if you don't know about it. Your trials may be more arduous than that, but any weightlifter will tell you that strength is gained against stiff resistance. Consequently, we worry, often about things that are actually of no moment to our growth as people even if they are very important to our life in the moment. People worry about money, jobs, cars, houses, retirement funds, entertainment, personal fitness and the like. We get caught up in the things of the world because we must also live in and deal with the world, and its challenges and requirements may at times feel overwhelming. Then there are all the other things we ought to do- pray, worship, serve in community organizations, help strangers, raise children, maintain relationships with friends and neighbors, improve our skills, keep learning, and be productive. It can cause burnout if you let it. We think WE must do all those things, and sometimes we think we are alone. We do not have to be.
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they toil not, neither do they spin, and yet Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like unto these. Far too much of our time, attention, energy, and means goes to things we cannot ultimately control. If your genetics decree, you may not be able to get a six pack or fit into that size 2 dress or look hot at the beach. If your employer is a jerk, you may not get a promotion or raise; you might actually get fired! If nature sends a hurricane, typhoon, earthquake, or volcano, you may find your resources depleted. If people break their promises, you may find yourself alone, and in some cases you may find yourself betrayed. For that reason, many of the happiest people are people who, when the going gets tough, turn to God. Lilies don't worry about economic recession, natural disasters, nearby plants, foraging animals, genetic mutation, etc. They simply do the best they can with what they have and rely on God to provide sun and water in the right proportions so that they can grow, bloom, and leave something behind that makes the world a better place.
Not everyone will be rich or famous or successful or live "happily ever after" like in the story books. Most people lead very quiet unassuming lives tending to their work, their families, and their hobbies. Most people seek and live a quiet, happy life. Not many people seek after things of eternal consequence. Yet, we have the promise that if we seek the kingdom of God, He will provide all the things you actually need. When the publicans came to Christ demanding Caesar's portion, Christ had one of his disciples pull the fish from the lake which had a coin in its mouth amounting to the sum of the tax. When Elijah came to the widow near Kidron and asked her for a cake, the barrel of meal and cruse of oil always had sufficient until the famine abated. When Jared and his family crossed the ocean, God made several clear stones shine in the dark so they would have light. God taught Noah to build an Ark. When Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son, he told Isaac when Isaac asked about the ram that God would provide. Even after God told Abraham that he passed the test, God provided a ram in the thicket so that, as Abraham promised his son, there would be a sacrifice. When they needed it, they had what they actually needed. Knowing these stories, and sometimes having our own, rather than trust those promises, we seek to lay up treasure for ourselves but remain poor before the Lord. God will provide everything you need. Maybe not how or when you like or the way you prefer, but He does. Sometimes it's not as much as we desire; sometimes it's a single Austrian Schilling, but you know you have at least that.
So many of you know people who receive things they did not earn or deserve and ask why you don't receive in kind. Here is Jesus' answer: "Therefore I say unto you, 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. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?" ( Matt 6:25). Our lives, our money, our health, all of those things are given to us by God to build His kingdom. Sure, we ought to provide and take care of the things we get, but when it goes to obsession about health or weight or your retirement portfolio or your standing at work, you miss the whole point of those things, the whole point of why we live in the first place. The parents who sacrifice their health (their looks) and their wealth to provide for their children are rich unto God. Caring for the things of the body in excess is as profitable as that same prosperous man who tore down his barn to store his goods only to die. He who dies with the most toys still dies, and then who benefits from our excess? Better to give of our bounty than have it rot away in storage; better to share our talents than have them rot in the dark. Better to trust God will give us what we need and use what He gives to His glory.
We cannot make ourselves younger or taller, and we may be able to make ourselves richer or wealthier, but to what end? We have been promised that God will provide everything we actually need. He clothes the lilies of the field and feeds the birds in the sky, and He will lead those who trust in Him and guide them with His eye. If it serves His purpose for us to have good health, and we are trying to take care of ourselves, we will be healthy and fit. If it serves His purpose for you to be rich, He will provide you with wealth to help His children. If it serves His purpose for you to be famous or powerful so that you can help those who seek for Him, He will open doors so that like James the Mormon or David Archuletta or Eric Liddel or any myriad of people who gained fame from ignominy you will end up in the spotlight. If it serves His purpose for you to be the teacher they need, the friend they need, the parent they need, or the stranger whose voice you hear in a blog on the internet, it's very likely that nobody will see what you do except for God, but "the Lord who seeth in secret shall reward thee openly". Most people who write blogs or make youtube videos or create podcasts do it, not because they feel like it, but for some personal gain. Sometimes it's for affirmation. Sometimes it's for information, to communicate with friends and family. Mostly, it's for remuneration. If those things are important to God, do what He asks, and they will come. Christ taught in Luke 12:31 "But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you."
We have that promise. The most important lesson we can learn in life is to find the will of God and do it wholeheartedly. It's not the natural thing. God often asks sacrifice, sometimes with no promise whatsoever, and even when we have promise, it usually doesn't make us rich or famous or powerful or validated. The widow woman didn't become rich for helping Elijah, and Jesus' followers barely scraped by until they became infamous because of their martyrdom! It's hard to trust God. He offers us a marshmallow and asks us to not eat it for a few minutes but that if we do we can have two or twelve. More times than not people take the single marshmallow and enjoy what is certain and immediately before them. We are not patient. We are not wise. We do not know the future or trust the wise. Maybe you are among that throng. Maybe you worry about what you'll do for a living or how well you'll do in school or, hopefully not, if you'll ever find someone with whom to share your life. Maybe you don't know if you ought to follow God's command and go sell all you have, give to the power, take up your cross and follow Him. Many people who claim to do so do so to get rich. They have their reward. Now a shilling may not be very valuable, but it reminds me when I hold it that I have always had everything I actually needed, especially since that day. Sure, I've had my share of dips and troughs, but He has always given me what I need when I really need it. I've been divorced, unjustly accused of crimes, investigated, injected, inspected, neglected, and rejected. I've been nearly penniless, and now I live in more comfort than I ever dreamed. God provides all that we need. I challenge you to trust Him and His promises, to act on what He asks and rely on Him to keep His word in His timing. I promise you that He shall give you what you need and that when it comes you will see His hand guiding you to a land of milk and honey. That has always been His promise even if you must first traverse the desert.
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