Witness (Not Whining)

So, the following post could sound a lot like whining, but I am not writing it to complain.  I am writing it as a testimony.  God provides!

I'm a bit late in posting about it, as the story starts about a year ago, but here it is....

     Having a new baby always costs money.  Even before the hospital bills hit, there's the expenditures of MORE diapers, more water bills, and eating out because a sleepless mama can't bear the thought of planning meals.

     Paul's truck went in for some warranty work last February.  Initially this was a blessing, because the (FREE!) rental they supplied got better than twice the gas mileage Paul's truck did.  And then.....  A tie rod broke on Paul's truck when they were aligning it post-repair. We ended up with a $1000 mechanic bill, which kicked off the most financially stressful period of our entire marriage. 

     In addition to the baby hospital bills, we also ended up with bills from the emergency room (Gideon), another surgery (me), and procedures for treatment of my severe varicose veins. 

     Then we found out our roof needed replaced following a hail storm, and insurance was only going to pay half. Our washing machine and mower also broke down. And then I blew a tire on the van, so ended up having to buy two new tires.  In the midst of all this, our normal yearly taxes and insurance were due. 

But God supplied all our needs! About the time that all savings accounts reached empty, Paul and I had a discussion.  I felt like our finances were out of control.  But I was also being convicted because we weren't giving God his portion.  We were giving every month, but I had not been giving the FULL tithe that we had decided on a couple years ago.  (Of course, I justified it with "but I give my time" and "we give in other ways.")  Paul and I talked about it, and decided we needed to give God all of His part.  

     So.  In faith, I wrote a check.  It's faith, to write a check for a couple hundred dollars, when you know you have several thousand dollars in bills coming due within the next couple months, and that we didn't have enough in savings to cover them.

      The same day I put the check in the offering, Paul was offered a part time job helping a man with roofing, which paid for gas and groceries those few months. We had to learn humility in admitting we couldn't afford certain things, and in taking assistance through free food that was offered us. It was tight, but we made it, and continued to give our full tithe the rest of the year.  We still had Christmas!  And the children got a chance to see the blessing of passing along blessings that have been given us when we were able to help a needy woman.

     "My God shall supply all your needs, according to his riches in glory."  (Philippians 4:19)  We all know there's so much more that he supplies, things of eternal value, but this is one instance of him providing for our physical needs - because He's such a great God!