2 Corinthians 11:9 (KJV)
And when I was present with you, and wanted, I was chargeable to no man: for that which was lacking to me the brethren which came from Macedonia supplied: and in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome unto you, and so will I keep myself.
I’ve been in the ministry now for more than forty years. We started out with absolutely nothing. I had been an ironworker and my wife a schoolteacher in the public school system in Oregon so, at the ages of twenty-two and twenty-three we were quite well off.
At age twenty-two my wife and I had:
· A brand-new house (built one year previous)
· A brand-new pick up
· A brand-new car
· A brand-new motorcycle
· A brand-new Kawasaki Jet Ski and
· A hang glider (it wasn’t new)
Of course, all of that was financed.
When I surrendered to go into the ministry:
· We lost the house to the bank[1]
· We gave the car to a friend who could take over payments
· We sold the motorcycle and hang glider or what I owed
· We gave the Jet Ski to my sister[2]
During that same period:
· We lost a baby in miscarriage.
· Almost died from propane poisoning in the RV we had moved into.
· Our income dropped more than 80%.
I can tell you, we “wanted.” We had very little and sometimes wondered where we would get a meal. From May of 1981 through October of 1987, we went through Bible College, planted two churches, and had two sons. During those years, we never had consistent work or a regular monthly income. We moved from Oregon to Colorado, then back to Oregon, and never received support from churches. I had become convinced that “with shekels come shackles,” and I didn’t even want Baptist shackles. Finally, in October of 1987, the church we had planted in Astoria was of sufficient size to offer us a regular income.
Though we knew what it was like to have “want” and suffered through times of “lack,” we also discovered something else—God is more than capable of meeting our “supply.”
Paul refused to be a burden to the believers because he knew God could and would supply what he lacked. I am burdened for those professing Christians who have never experienced God in that manner.
#GodsProvision #FaithJourney #TrustInGod #MinistryLife #DependOnHim
Shekels, Shackles, and Supply: Trusting God's Supply
[1] We gave it back in lieu of foreclosure. Doing that did not damage out credit for the future.
[2] I think the loan for that had been wrapped into the motorcycle.
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