Our family had two big October expenses. We had an out-of-state wedding requiring two nights at a hotel. And after two years of extreme caution for my sake during Covid, our youngest wanted to invite classmates for a 6th birthday at Chuck E. Cheese.
Kelly exceptionally stewards every dollar God provides our family. [For that trip, her total planned budget for EVERY expense was only over by $8!] She plans well and realized that trip and party would exceed our monthly budget by $550. We keep an emergency fund and knew we could pull from that if we needed. But of course, that’s *really* for true emergencies.
Both events felt extremely important to us. We didn’t want to cancel either. So what would we do??
We would pray, continue to scrimp and save where we could, and pray some more. I began asking the Lord for an extra $550 in extra gifts and income to cover all those expenses.
And you know what?! God MOSTLY answered our prayers by the end of October. On October 31st we’d received $450 in extra gifts and income.
But this frustrated and confused me. And I told God how I felt.
I don’t worship and pray to a God who partially answers prayers when I believe those prayers are in His will. What type of God miraculously supplies $450 but stops short of the last $100 I requested?
No. My Heavenly Father knows how to finish what He started. And He started this agreement over 9 years ago when Kelly and I clearly felt called to a church that clearly could not provide the full financial support we would need. So we would steward our church and family finances as best as possible and, whenever we fell short, we’d trust Him for the difference. My commitment to lead our church even closer to the poor and hurting has only further entrenched our need for His provision.
So, in faith, I repeatedly reminded God of my October prayer and reminded Him He is a faithful God who doesn’t *partially* answer.
Even after October came and went, I trusted the last check would still come in the mail.
As recently as 12:09pm today I reminded God in my email prayer journal: that He would supply the last check in one dated for October. [I asked for this money IN October. So any unexpected gifts dated for November wouldn’t really be answering my prayer would it??]
On November 21, God granted me the faith still to believe He would provide one more check dated for October. Crazy!
I picked up the mail today at 1:41pm. Included was a check and note from a church that sends our family a monthly love offering. But they’re October offering never came. We don’t ask questions in cases like that, since it’s money we’re never owed, anyway. Today’s November $150 gift included a second $150 for October!
The post office had delivered it incorrectly to a leasing business that probably receives hundreds of checks each month. That company accidentally deposited the October check intended for my family. Once the company and church discovered the error, it was corrected.
So here before you, dear friends, is a reminder that He hears our prayers and has the power to sustain as when we follow him. Not only that, He often gives over and above what we ask. I requested $100 and He gave $150. Even when an answer to prayer seems 21 days late, never stop trusting that…
He is faithful.
