I've Lived Enough Life to Say

When Michael fell and ended up in the hospital, our income came to an abrupt halt. Being self employed with a company to run provided our only source of income. We had a paychecks worth of money in the bank and a tiny bit of savings. Like most people, we’d be in trouble by the beginning of next month.

But God . . .

In the elevator of the hospital, my sister handed me a check. I wasn’t expecting it but was grateful. A few days later, Keith, Mikes employee called me to tell me that he had sent word out to his church and they had some groceries they wanted to bring over. I met Keith and his wife at the door, each holding a couple bags of groceries. Keith went back to the car yelling “I’ve got more to bring in!” Trip after trip Keith loaded up my counters with bags of groceries. As I was digging through the contents, I pulled out canned goods and staples, beverages and fruit. An assortment of food that would keep us for weeks. Then I found the gift cards. So many gift cards. After Keith left, I counted 21 bags of groceries and household supplies.

I went into my bedroom and fell on the bed crying and praising God. I couldn’t believe it! The generosity, the provision, the overabundance from a group of believers who had never met us, but just answered the call when one of their members spread the word that a fellow brother and sister in Christ needed help.

A few days before Michael’s accident, we spent an evening with Michele and Blake, old friends of ours who were in town visiting family. We caught up with them and Michele’s sister Missy and their parents. It was good to see them in person and laugh together. After Michael fell, Missy reached out for our address. A few weeks later, we got a letter and a check from Missy’s church how Missy told them of our situation. They wanted to cover our mortgage for the month!

Month after month, large and small monetary gifts trickled in. It kept us afloat as we closed Michael’s tree service, we sold our home, we downsized, we moved back to Idaho where we had a rental, Michael went to school and we pressed into the new life we found ourselves walking.

It wasn’t the tangible gifts that left the biggest impression but the realization that we weren’t alone. God was taking care of us. He was not abandoning us to walk this path alone. God may not have prevented Michael’s fall but He did intend to be with us in the fire and the river. We were not going to burn or drown.

For 15 months, the Lord took care of our financial needs. We never went hungry, we were able to keep the lights on. He was faithful. Incredibly faithful to us. Then in March of the following year, Michael received his first disabilty check. One we were hoping for a year earlier. There had been a snafu with the paperwork. For those 15 months, God provided for us rather than the government. And when Michael’s first check came, God’s provision stopped. We didn’t get anymore monthly gifts of money to tide us over. We didn’t need to. We marveled at God’s timing. To the exact month, God knew! The gifts didn’t stop before we could make it on our own and they didn’t continue after our extreme need was over. It was the perfect timing … God’s timing.

Blessings, Gail