For those who don't know, I have been broke for the entire month of January and the first week of February. I sent out an email to a few friends to ask that they pray for the Lord to provide for me in this time of instability and that I have the faith that He will do so. And He did, but that's getting ahead of myself. I will say this before I continue: I received my loan refund check for school today so I'm no longer broke. I can now pay for my rent, car insurance, and gym membership without having to skip any meals or whatever. But on Friday, this was not the case.
So when I went home for Christmas, I was sitting in church and felt the Lord putting on my heart to give a bit more money for the offering on Christmas Eve than I had originally planned. I was a little nervous about giving money that I might soon need, but I trusted the Lord and gave it. I also felt in my heart that He would provide for me if and when I didn't have the money I needed and He did. So when my money got real tight I sent an email to a few close friends to pray for my financial situation. In no way was my purpose in doing so to ask them for money. So when my rent came due and I began to worry about paying for it and still being able to eat the Lord provided for me. I received a check in the mail for $200 from a dear friend and my rent each month is $193.75. On top of that, I had friends give me two plus grocery bags of food so I no longer had to worry on either front.
So I was good for a few weeks. Then came time for my car insurance and my gym membership to come due and I had some money in the bank but I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to afford both. On top of that, I was worried about having enough gas to drive to school for my intersession course that next week. So I called my car insurance company and asked if they could give me an extension on the payment date. They were gracious and allowed me a few more days. Again, the Lord provided. I received a check in the mail for a $100 from a couple friends and I was good to make the payments I needed to and I still had food from the two grocery bags of food. I also had friends and roommates who shared food with me without me ever telling them my need for food.
By this time, I was expecting to receive my refund check from the school but it never came. My roommate got his, but I didn't. So I went into to school to see if there was something I had forgotten to do. There wasn't, the school just had not yet received my loan from the government and they were not sure when they would. So again, I found myself running low on cash and somehow (I'm not good at budgeting) I found myself a few dollars in the hole on my bank account. So I borrowed $20 from my roommate and was able to take care of that before I I was charged for overdraft fees. Yet, my gas was getting low and my mom started asking about my money situation. I told her that I had not yet received my check but that I would be okay and that I didn't need any money, but she talked to dad and they decided they would give me $100 to help out. Again, I never asked them for the money and we didn't usually talk about the subject of money so I feel the Lord laid it on their hearts to help me. I was able to get gas and buy a few groceries with this money.
Then our utility bill came due and I was pretty broke. We called the energy company and got an extension. I was hoping that I would soon get a check from the school for my loans. I didn't, but my roommate Nick found $100 in our front yard. He gave it to me and said, "When I found this the first thing I thought was, this belongs to Nate." It was very humbling and awesome to realize how cool my roommates are. We wanted to be sure that the money was not our neighbor's before I deposited it in the bank. I went to over to talk to her, but she was not home so I had to wait for the next day. I went to school and when I came home I went over to talk to her. I was nervous that it might be her's but I knew if it was the Lord would provide for me because I was willing to return it to it's rightful owner. I told my mom about finding it and she told my aunt. They were in agreement that they wished my roommates and I weren't so honest. Ha. So when I talked to my neighbor she told me she hadn't been outside at all the day before so it wasn't her's. She jokingly raised her hand to the sky and said "Maybe it came from up there." She had no idea. So again the Lord provided for me. I went home and wrote a check for the electric bill and still had some money to spare.
I forgot to mention I also was given forty dollars from a friend who just wanted to help after hearing part of this story. So I have been blessed over and over again by faithful friends and loved ones in the past month.
Most recently, I was getting worried about when I'd get my check because with the new month and school in full swing again. I was running into the same problems: little money and rent due, in need of food and gas money. One day I was on campus and I saw a pastor friend of mine who just invited me to lunch. I had come that day not sure what I would do for lunch, but the Lord provided. Then I saw my mentor later that day after he had gone through the mentorship orientation program. He took me to dinner. So I was given two meals in one day. The Lord is good.
I saw the pastor friend of mine again a few days later when I had resolved to go speak with the business office again about my check. They told me I should receive it by the end of the week. He asked me about it and gave me $20 which I reluctantly took from him, but knew full-well that I needed it for gas money. When I got home, I had received a letter from a friend who is two or three years younger than I am with $40 in it. I went and deposited it in my bank account and was humbled yet again by how my friends had listened to the Lord's promptings to help provide for me in my time of need.
I started hanging out with this really wonderful girl who I'm now dating, who took me out to lunch one day, made me three different meals and even took me out to dinner on our first official date. I never told her that I needed food or anything like that but it just happened that way. So the Lord provided me with food through our relationship. And yesterday, I went to the Colorado House Church All-Gather where I was given a free box lunch from chic-fil-a. Then when I got home, my check was waiting for me.
It has been a very humbling month, but the Lord became my Provider. I have learned to be more thankful for the things that I have and relationships that I have made because of the events that have happened. I will one day provide for someone in need out of the abundance I have been given, but for now I can only praise the Lord for those faithful people He used to provide for me. How great is our God who provides for those in need. I want to leave you with a part of the message Jesus gave to the crowds on the Mount. May my story and this scripture be an encouragement to you in your times of need:
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[e]?
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own
-Matt. 6.25-34
