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| Author Pamela Thibodeaux |
When Christine invited me to blog today on
something the Lord did to inspire my faith, I thought… There is SO much He’s
done in SO many ways, how can I condense these into one blog post!?
Then I got to thinking….what could I share
that the majority of people in all walks of life could identify with and be
encouraged and blessed by? Then it dawned on me – the one thing we all have in
common is money! Whether we are pondering the need for, abundance of, or the
lack thereof, money is one issue folks deal with on a monthly (sometimes daily)
basis.
I read stories in the Bible like the widow
whose oil didn’t run dry until she stopped pouring, and the widow who baked a
cake for the prophet out of her last shred of provision and yet, her needs were
miraculously met, and then there’s the one about the widow’s mite where Jesus
said her gift was greatest because she gave out of her need. Still…. Money has
always been one of those areas of faith I struggle with.
What I’ve come to learn over the years
though is it isn’t money per se’, but
my perception of money that’s a challenge. After all, my Father owns all of the
silver and gold and the cattle upon a thousand hills….
Let me share with you these instances in my
life where my belief in money and God’s provision were challenged and how He
came through….
Christmas
1993…My husband’s boss decided to take an extended
holiday from Thanksgiving through New Years without paying his employees. We
were waiting on my check the day before Christmas Eve so that we could pick up
a few things for our 4 children. Hearing of these circumstances, a nurse in the
facility where I worked gifted me with $100 asking only that I do the same for
someone else some day in return. Doesn’t sound like a lot, but we managed a
very nice Christmas.
Although my faith in God’s provision was
jump started in 1993, we always managed to barely get by.
“Where’s the
abundance?” I asked. All it would take was a measly $125,000 and we could pay
off all debt and set ourselves up so that I could stay home and write!
No miracle occurred in our finances in
answer to that constant plea, then in 2005
my husband suffered congestive heart failure. He needed a
defibrillator/pacemaker and we had neither insurance nor any savings to speak
of…how on earth would we get through this? I wondered, but God had it
covered…..
The company (Medtronics) donated the
$25,000 device, the doctor donated his services for the surgery and 1 year
after until my husband could get on Medicaid (no idea actual cost here but I’m
sure it was well over $25,000), and the hospital forgave the $80,000+
bill! One night while praying and
thanking HIM, God spoke to my heart… “You got your $125,000 just not in the way
you thought.”
If this wasn’t proof enough that God’s plan
and provision is far greater (even though sometimes much different than we
imagine), get a load of this….2 days before my husband was
admitted into the hospital we signed papers to refinance our house, an
agreement that afforded us credit life/disability insurance on him. An $80,000
note of which we never paid a dime during his illness, and upon his death, left
me with a home free and clear of debt!
Now, believe me when I say I’d take on
every penny of that debt to have my husband back and this journey through grief
is an experience I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy, but God’s provision
through all of this has impacted my faith in ways I can never define.
There are still times I wish for a
financial miracle but then all I have to do is look back and remember….My God
supplies all my needs according to HIS riches in glory….
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Blog: http://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com
through Face Book: http://facebook.com/pamelasthibodeaux
or Twitter: http://twitter.com/psthib
@psthib
Blurb: Music is the magical entry into the spirit world; the
golden gate into the Kingdom of God. But we mustn’t be of the mindset that God
only uses Christian music to reach out and touch our mind, heart and spirit.
God uses any and every means available to speak to His
children.
Our job is
to be open and receptive.
In this
devotional, Pamela S Thibodeaux shares how God opened her spirit to a deeper
understanding of the abundance of His grace and mercy through the words of the
song, The Rose sung by Country &
Western artist Conway Twitty.
Pamela
offers Seeds to Ponder and a prayer
as she parallels the love of God and the Christian life to each verse of the
song.
Love is a Rose is
available in print,
on Kindle, Nook,
and through Smashwords for all other
e-reader devices.
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