Financial Miracles or Happenstance? You Decide

Father sat down on the edge of the narrow bed. “Corrie,” he began gently, “when you and I go to Amsterdam-when do I give you your ticket?”
I sniffed a few times, considering this.
“Why, just before we get on the train.”
“Exactly. And our wise Father in heaven knows when we’re going to need things, too. Don’t run out ahead of Him, Corrie…”

A friend told me of this quote from Corrie ten Boom’s The Hiding Place, years ago. The truth of it has impacted my faith ever since.

To put the quote into context, Corrie is crying because she’s afraid her father will die. This is a terrible thought for any child, however, it’s hard to imagine how much greater that fear would be when the danger of war is all around.

When we lost our son five years ago, people would often say to us that there is nothing like losing a child. That is the most tragic death to experience. It certainly was, and still is, the hardest for us.

While talking with a widower not long ago, he shared with us that he and his wife were married for almost 50 years. It had only been a year since he lost her. He still wore the pain on his face.

“They tell me losing a spouse is the hardest loss you can experience,” he said, “even harder than losing a child.” My husband and I stole a glance at each other and flashed a knowing half-smile. Then we both quietly nodded in agreement with the gentleman. His eyes dropped to the floor and a quiet pause fell over the conversation.

The loss each of us experience, whether it be a death in the family, joblessness, a marriage, or even losing a home can’t be measured by anyone else’s loss or pain. If it’s the hardest crisis you have ever experienced, it is the worst thing in your life to have happen.

It’s a given that we must take responsibility for our own lives. However, there are times when you work hard to do all that you know is right, and life spins out of your hands. Knowing there’s nothing more within your power you can physically do is even more devastating.

What then?

In week nine of our 13 weeks series of Lifting Your Family Out of Economic Hardship, I’m reminded of the times that the heavenly Father did come through with the ticket in the last hour.

The Henningsens are our close family friends. We’ve lived and raised our children together on neighboring farms for many years. I’ve had the pleasure of watching their children grow up along side mine.

At one point Aaron, the young man on the left, lived with his new bride in a small apartment behind us. As a struggling songwriter he worked very hard at every odd job he could. The song in the video, “To Believe,” is sung by his sister Clara and their dad Brian. Listen to hear the true story of how his wise heavenly Father provided in the last hour.

Now, “To Believe” is on their first EP along with their hit song “American Beautiful” and new single “Miss You.”

Aaron may have written about his own faith and circumstances, but we also “got a check from God” one day.

When my husband, Mike, was in the hospital things looked pretty bleak for us.

One day as I pulled weeds and ~~prayed~~ worried, I gave God my list of fears. Somehow, faith rose up from deep inside me and I felt God say, “I got this.” No audible voice from heaven, and no explanation for the sudden peace that flooded my soul.

We had saved a three-month emergency fund. It was the beginning of September — our disability insurance wouldn’t kick in until six months down the road, if at all.

Just one week after taking out my fears and frustrations out on God and weeds, I received a letter in the mail. The factory that Mike worked in for 13 years, early in our marriage, was restructuring. They wanted to know if he wanted his retirement early — in one lump sum. He worked there over 25 years ago.

Just three months later, with our savings completely depleted, we took the last few dollars out and put gas in the car and went grocery shopping. We pulled into the drive wondering how long the gas and groceries would last.

Before going in, we checked the mail and there it was. It wasn’t large, but it was the exact amount we needed, just when we needed it.