TIME FOR FAITH.

‘Do you really think God can supply material things?’ asked Mary as we sipped our cup of tea.

‘Yes , certainly.’

‘I’d like to think I could get what I wanted,’ Mary flashed back.

‘Wait a moment! There’s no promise to meet our wants’, I reminded her. ‘But God promised to supply our needs, and I have no hesitation in asking Him to supply mine.’

‘Well. Give me an example’, said Mary pointedly.

‘When my husband studied for his medical course we lived on $12 a week, and with four children then we often exhausted our money. However, we trusted God for our needs.’

Mary shrugged her shoulders as I continued, ‘I remember holding the milk can one night knowing there was no money to pay the milkman. But I walked out to the front porch to leave the can in its usual place. However, I heard a clink as I placed the can on the verandah wall. And there was 50 cents left by someone.’

Mary was not impressed. ‘That’s not much.’

‘It was as a gold mine to us,‘ I explained . ‘God supplied our immediate need of milk for the children. It may sound a small amount to you, but that fulfilled His promise.’

‘But let me tell you more.’ Mary nodded, as a tiny smile of understanding appeared.

‘When we returned from three years in Indonesia with our six children, we had no home. We prayed and asked God to provide us a home near a primary school, a high school, a shopping centre, a church, and a suitable practice and consulting room for my husband. ‘

‘That’s a lot,’ interrupted Mary, rather bluntly.

‘Yes, but they were needs. We returned to stay with my brother and sister-in-law, and we could not impose 8 of us on them for long. Yet, the same day we advertised for a home in a particular area, a man advertised his home for sale, using the identical wording. Through a provision of my dear parents, who both died while we were in Indonesia, we were able to secure this home – a stone’s throw from a small shopping centre, five minutes from the local school, ten minutes from the high school, and a similar walk from a church, and a set of consulting rooms for my husband.’

Mary looked surprised. ‘Now, that sounds wonderful.’

‘It isn’t any more wonderful than the supply of the fifty cents for the milk,’ I reminded her. ‘The same God saw each need, and He supplied accordingly. He can do the same for you, Mary. Don’t fret over the things you lack, or what you need for tomorrow. The Heavenly Father knows what you need.’ ( Matthew 5:33,34 )

‘It seems I must trust Him, without working these things out for myself.’

‘You’re right, Mary. A restful trust brings peace of mind, without room for worry.’

‘So then your husband bought a medical practice, I suppose?’

‘No, you do not return from Asian countries loaded with money. We had nothing, and Harrold worked for a few weeks as a School Doctor. Then came a serious Influenza epidemic, and many families newly in this area had not previously attended a doctor. So that initiated the practice, which grew, especially as, at that time, many young marrieds settled in the district, and, of course, eventually, babies arrived.

It was God’s miracle.’

‘Wow!’ said Mary, beginning to see the meaning of ‘needs’.

‘Well, Paul wrote, "‘My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’" ( Philippians 4:19 )

‘You are always quoting the Bible, and I used to laugh, but I can see it is so meaningful to you. How about me? Does it apply?’

‘There is a stipulation, my dear. The verse says ‘my God’. Paul knew God was his heavenly Father because Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the price for his sin. Turning away from his selfish life of rebellion, and accepting Christ’s sacrificial death on his behalf, Paul was then reconciled to God his Father.‘

Mary sighed. ‘ I have never understood that,’ she confessed. ‘but now I see. Christ died for me to bring me to God. ‘ I saw a tear trickle down her face, as she said, ‘ I can’t wait for the opportunity to trust the father for my needs.’

(And I am waiting for that phone call from Mary to tell me how God answered her needs.)

READ MATTHEW 6:25-34