God Will Meet Our Needs
Stories
Object:
A Note from John
Yes, we are still floating on air after our daughter Kati's wedding. Walking her down the aisle was one of the biggest thrills of my life. Kati had been feeling a little faint just before we left the parlor to begin the trek down our 100-foot-long aisle. I put my hand on her forehead and offered some energy, a last opportunity for Dad to fuss over his firstborn before she left the nest for good. She took a deep breath and we set off. When we got about two-thirds of the way down, I saw Helen, a ninety-some-year-old beloved matriarch of our church, sitting on the end of the tenth pew -- not her usual spot. Her father, Charles Wesley Heywood, had been pastor of the church in the 1930s. He had performed the ceremony for Helen and her late husband Jim over 60 years ago. I squeezed Helen's arm as Kati and I went by. Then Kati saw Mark waiting with a big smile, and I saw my own bride glowing, as she had been on our wedding day. I could feel Kati regaining her strength. We did the handoff, with kisses all around, and a new era began in our lives. No, I did not officiate, but I did have a small part during the exchange of the rings. It was a glorious day. God is good.
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A Story to Live By
God Will Meet Our Needs
In an article that appeared in the Adventist Review in December of 2002, Carlos Medley tells of a man who believed that God will meet our every need:
Born in Prussia in 1805, George Mueller became a mighty spiritual force in Great Britain. He pastored a 1,200-member church, operated Sunday schools, and supported 187 missionaries. Through his orphanages he housed, fed, clothed, taught, and evangelized 2,050 orphans annually....
Mueller was a model of frugal stewardship. One of the hallmarks of his ministry was that he depended on God alone to meet his needs. He always laid out his plans before God but never articulated his needs to other people.... On countless occasions Mueller would make his requests known to God, and the exact amount of money, the right amount of food, came at the time of greatest need.
Perhaps one of the most widely known experiences was the time Mueller had no food to feed the orphans. He simply sat the children down for breakfast, passed out empty cups and bowls, and thanked God for the food they were about to receive. At the end of the prayer there was a knock on the door. When the door was opened, there stood a baker with enough bread to feed everyone. A second knock on the door brought a man whose milk cart had broken down in front of the orphanage. He gave out all his milk so his wagon could be repaired....
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Sharing Visions
Eagerly Waiting
by Eileen Fink & Pamela Burns
And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once, and after that the judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
Hebrews 9:27
In my dream, I was in my bed trying to get to sleep when I heard someone coming. My heart was in my throat, and I was filled with fear as he came closer. I thought, "I'll pretend I'm sleeping and maybe he'll go away." Then I heard my husband's voice saying, "I'll be coming for you soon." The fear disappeared, and when I turned to see him, I awoke. I lay there feeling such happiness and peace. It was so good to hear his voice! He's been gone for almost nine years.
Eileen Fink attends Spring Lake Community Church in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Some years ago, when I worked as a registered nurse in a nursing home, I knew a delightful Polish woman whose sweet personality was apparent to everyone even though she spoke no English. Her daughter came every day to bring her dinner and to eat with her. The daughter told us her mother had been a Polish freedom fighter, and because of this she and her mother had been incarcerated in a Nazi concentration camp. The daughter told how her mother had suffered and sacrificed in many ways to keep her alive.
One evening, the mother and her daughter and I were watching the evening news as I finished my rounds. We watched in amazement as the Berlin Wall was being torn down. None of us could take our eyes off of the television, especially the old woman. When the news was over we looked at her and she was still. The old freedom fighter had quietly passed.
Pamela Burns is a mother, wife, and nurse in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
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Good Stories
Giving All
by John Sumwalt
"Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on."
Mark 12:43b-44
Gerald Fitzgerald was the biggest giver at First Redeemer Church. Fitz, as he was called, was the owner of his own business and well-known for his generosity. Because of this, he had often been called on by the leaders in the congregation to head up the annual pledge drive. One year, while going over the pledges from the previous year, Fitz was surprised to discover that the second biggest pledge in the church was almost as much as his pledge. Fitz didn't recognize the name of the pledger, so when it was time to assign the callers for visitation Sunday, he added Midge Griswold's name to the list of persons that he would personally call on.
Fitz was curious about who Midge was. No one on his committee had recognized her name. The pastor said she was a new member who had joined the congregation the year before. Fitz looked forward to meeting Midge. He thought she must be quite a wealthy woman if she was able to give almost as much he did. Perhaps she was an older woman who had inherited money from her husband or her family. She must live in a grand house in a nice neighborhood. Maybe he and his wife could invite her over for dinner sometime. If she was new in the church, she might welcome an opportunity to meet some of the congregation's leaders.
When Fitz pulled up in front of a small apartment building, which according to his directions was where Midge lived, he checked the address twice to make sure he was at the right place. She must own the building, Fitz thought to himself. He told the young woman who answered the door of the very modest apartment that he was looking for Mrs. Griswold. "I'm Midge Griswold," the young woman replied. "What can I do for you?" Fitz was so taken aback that he almost forgot why he had come. But finally he managed to tell her that he was from the church and he had come to pick up her pledge for the next year. "Oh, of course," Midge said, "I've been expecting you. Come and sit down while I fill it out."
Fitz noticed a picture of an older couple on the end table and he asked Midge who they were. "They are my grandparents," Midge said. "They are missionaries in Haiti. That's where I grew up. Grandpa and Grandma raised me after my folks died." Midge handed Fitz her pledge card. She hadn't bothered to put it in an envelope, so Fitz couldn't help but see that Midge's pledge for the next year was substantial. Indeed, it was considerably more than his own. Fitz couldn't help himself. He was startled. How could such a young woman with apparently modest means afford to give so much? Fitz wasn't ordinarily a nosy person, but in this instance he couldn't help himself; he had to know.
"Miss Griswold," Fitz began in a more formal voice than he intended, "I am curious about your pledge." Immediately a look of great concern came over Midge's face, and before Fitz could go on to explain himself she interrupted him and said, "I hope it's enough. I know I'm not giving as much as I should. Nurses make good money here, but the cost of living is so much higher than it is in Haiti. I can't seem to give any more than a tithe. I'm hoping to do better next year. The need in the world is so great, and our church does so much good. I want to help all I can."
"Oh, don't worry," Fitz said. "You're doing just fine. We are very fortunate to have you as a part of our congregation."
With that, Fitz bid Midge a hasty good-bye and left as quickly as he could. He was deeply troubled by Midge's generosity. How can she live like that, Fitz wondered? Giving so much -- it's not practical. But what troubled him most was how much he was going to have to raise his own pledge.
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Scrap Pile
The Greatest Gift I Received in Ministry
by L. Doward McBain
"For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has but in everything she had, all she had to live on."
Mark 12:44
Our Bennett, Colorado, charge proved to be a surpassing experience. We lived in a tiny parsonage, worshiped in a tiny church, and served a tiny rural congregation. It was here we met the sickly but saintly Mrs. Rolf, a symbol of all the really good and sacrificial saints we have known through the years.
She was one of four devout parishioners who met with us for prayer each Thursday afternoon at the church, next door to the parsonage. She rarely missed. She came when she was well enough to stand, and soon we learned her story. She lived with her 12-year-old son, who was spending most of his summer herding sheep to buy school clothes for the coming fall. Mrs. Rolf's husband had left her several years earlier for reasons that never seemed clear. She was destitute and received meager relief from the community. If she had been the only member of the congregation, her strong Christian spirit was enough to make those few weeks in our first parish worthwhile.
Before we knew it the summer was gone; our last weekend had come and one more sermon was to be preached. Saturday night the Bennett people planned a going-away party. They brought many practical gifts for the young couple returning to seminary in Philadelphia -- kitchen utensils and enough canned good from the rural membership to last for many weeks. But Mrs. Rolf was not there.
The next morning the little church was packed for my farewell sermon, but our special friend was missing again. So shortly after the service, we finished our packing and decided we should package some groceries and drive the old Model A to "String Town," the poor section where Mrs. Rolf lived.
She answered my knock by a feeble call from her bed. She explained that she was too weak to get up, and regretted not being able to attend our party or the last worship service. She then hinted she was partly relieved, because she had no gift to give the minister and his wife. She asked me to pray for her son, and I did. Then before I left she said she remembered that she did have something to give. Would I promise to take it? Not being able to refuse her, I said yes. She told me where to find it, and I nervously moved to the other room.
It wouldn't be difficult to find, as the next room was the only other room in the house. I can see it as clearly today as in that summer of 1940. There was a small table with two chairs, a little potbelly stove, and a new lid-lifter she said the relief board had given her the previous week. Her cupboard amounted to three shelves on the far wall; like Mother Hubbard's cupboard, it was empty. Her gift was on the top ledge, she said. She must be wrong. But to be sure, I reached to the far right and slowly brought my hand back across the empty board until I quickly knew that she was right. There it was: a 25-cent piece.
I took it to her and said I could not accept it. She reminded me of my promise and said, "You must take it. It is all I have to give." I protested, but I took it. Her last words to me were enough for a lifetime. "Use it as you go back to seminary and prepare to be a good minister of God."
I do not know what happened to that 25 cents. I only know what happened to me. In many ways that quarter bought a minister. I have never been able to shake off her sacrifice. During the ensuing years we have many times been given large gifts, but nothing has affected me quite like the 25-cent piece I found on that ledge in a barren cottage in "String Town," Bennett, Colorado.
L. Doward McBain is a retired pastor from Berkeley, California.
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**********************************************
An Invitation to Send Stories
We are collecting personal stories for a third volume in the vision series, to be released in 2004. The new working title is Shining Moments: Visions of the Holy in Ordinary Lives. If you have any stories to share of your personal experience of the holy, please send them to jsumwalt@naspa.net.
New Book Released
We are happy to report that the second volume in the vision series, Sharing Visions: Divine Revelations, Angels, and Holy Coincidences, is now available from CSS Publishing Company. For more information about the book click here or visit the CSS website at http://www.csspub.com.
Special Pricing for StoryShare Subscribers
Sharing Visions retails for $19.95. CSS has graciously agreed to make the book available to StoryShare subscribers for just $11.97 (plus shipping & handling). To take advantage of this special pricing, you must use the special code SS40SV. Simply e-mail your order to orders@csspub.com or phone 1-800-241-4056. If you live outside the U.S., phone 419-227-1818.
Praise for Sharing Visions
Bishop Richard Wilke, creator of the Disciple Bible Study series, writes: "I am rejoicing as I read the testimonies in Sharing Visions. What an inspiration! I recall my father, an unemotional man, telling me that his mother (who had died some years before) appeared to him in a dream and gave him counsel on a difficult decision he was wrestling with."
Return to top
StoryShare, November 9, 2003, issue.
Copyright 2003 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., P.O. Box 4503, Lima, Ohio 45802-4503.
Yes, we are still floating on air after our daughter Kati's wedding. Walking her down the aisle was one of the biggest thrills of my life. Kati had been feeling a little faint just before we left the parlor to begin the trek down our 100-foot-long aisle. I put my hand on her forehead and offered some energy, a last opportunity for Dad to fuss over his firstborn before she left the nest for good. She took a deep breath and we set off. When we got about two-thirds of the way down, I saw Helen, a ninety-some-year-old beloved matriarch of our church, sitting on the end of the tenth pew -- not her usual spot. Her father, Charles Wesley Heywood, had been pastor of the church in the 1930s. He had performed the ceremony for Helen and her late husband Jim over 60 years ago. I squeezed Helen's arm as Kati and I went by. Then Kati saw Mark waiting with a big smile, and I saw my own bride glowing, as she had been on our wedding day. I could feel Kati regaining her strength. We did the handoff, with kisses all around, and a new era began in our lives. No, I did not officiate, but I did have a small part during the exchange of the rings. It was a glorious day. God is good.
Return to top
A Story to Live By
God Will Meet Our Needs
In an article that appeared in the Adventist Review in December of 2002, Carlos Medley tells of a man who believed that God will meet our every need:
Born in Prussia in 1805, George Mueller became a mighty spiritual force in Great Britain. He pastored a 1,200-member church, operated Sunday schools, and supported 187 missionaries. Through his orphanages he housed, fed, clothed, taught, and evangelized 2,050 orphans annually....
Mueller was a model of frugal stewardship. One of the hallmarks of his ministry was that he depended on God alone to meet his needs. He always laid out his plans before God but never articulated his needs to other people.... On countless occasions Mueller would make his requests known to God, and the exact amount of money, the right amount of food, came at the time of greatest need.
Perhaps one of the most widely known experiences was the time Mueller had no food to feed the orphans. He simply sat the children down for breakfast, passed out empty cups and bowls, and thanked God for the food they were about to receive. At the end of the prayer there was a knock on the door. When the door was opened, there stood a baker with enough bread to feed everyone. A second knock on the door brought a man whose milk cart had broken down in front of the orphanage. He gave out all his milk so his wagon could be repaired....
Return to top
Sharing Visions
Eagerly Waiting
by Eileen Fink & Pamela Burns
And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once, and after that the judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
Hebrews 9:27
In my dream, I was in my bed trying to get to sleep when I heard someone coming. My heart was in my throat, and I was filled with fear as he came closer. I thought, "I'll pretend I'm sleeping and maybe he'll go away." Then I heard my husband's voice saying, "I'll be coming for you soon." The fear disappeared, and when I turned to see him, I awoke. I lay there feeling such happiness and peace. It was so good to hear his voice! He's been gone for almost nine years.
Eileen Fink attends Spring Lake Community Church in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Some years ago, when I worked as a registered nurse in a nursing home, I knew a delightful Polish woman whose sweet personality was apparent to everyone even though she spoke no English. Her daughter came every day to bring her dinner and to eat with her. The daughter told us her mother had been a Polish freedom fighter, and because of this she and her mother had been incarcerated in a Nazi concentration camp. The daughter told how her mother had suffered and sacrificed in many ways to keep her alive.
One evening, the mother and her daughter and I were watching the evening news as I finished my rounds. We watched in amazement as the Berlin Wall was being torn down. None of us could take our eyes off of the television, especially the old woman. When the news was over we looked at her and she was still. The old freedom fighter had quietly passed.
Pamela Burns is a mother, wife, and nurse in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Return to top
Good Stories
Giving All
by John Sumwalt
"Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on."
Mark 12:43b-44
Gerald Fitzgerald was the biggest giver at First Redeemer Church. Fitz, as he was called, was the owner of his own business and well-known for his generosity. Because of this, he had often been called on by the leaders in the congregation to head up the annual pledge drive. One year, while going over the pledges from the previous year, Fitz was surprised to discover that the second biggest pledge in the church was almost as much as his pledge. Fitz didn't recognize the name of the pledger, so when it was time to assign the callers for visitation Sunday, he added Midge Griswold's name to the list of persons that he would personally call on.
Fitz was curious about who Midge was. No one on his committee had recognized her name. The pastor said she was a new member who had joined the congregation the year before. Fitz looked forward to meeting Midge. He thought she must be quite a wealthy woman if she was able to give almost as much he did. Perhaps she was an older woman who had inherited money from her husband or her family. She must live in a grand house in a nice neighborhood. Maybe he and his wife could invite her over for dinner sometime. If she was new in the church, she might welcome an opportunity to meet some of the congregation's leaders.
When Fitz pulled up in front of a small apartment building, which according to his directions was where Midge lived, he checked the address twice to make sure he was at the right place. She must own the building, Fitz thought to himself. He told the young woman who answered the door of the very modest apartment that he was looking for Mrs. Griswold. "I'm Midge Griswold," the young woman replied. "What can I do for you?" Fitz was so taken aback that he almost forgot why he had come. But finally he managed to tell her that he was from the church and he had come to pick up her pledge for the next year. "Oh, of course," Midge said, "I've been expecting you. Come and sit down while I fill it out."
Fitz noticed a picture of an older couple on the end table and he asked Midge who they were. "They are my grandparents," Midge said. "They are missionaries in Haiti. That's where I grew up. Grandpa and Grandma raised me after my folks died." Midge handed Fitz her pledge card. She hadn't bothered to put it in an envelope, so Fitz couldn't help but see that Midge's pledge for the next year was substantial. Indeed, it was considerably more than his own. Fitz couldn't help himself. He was startled. How could such a young woman with apparently modest means afford to give so much? Fitz wasn't ordinarily a nosy person, but in this instance he couldn't help himself; he had to know.
"Miss Griswold," Fitz began in a more formal voice than he intended, "I am curious about your pledge." Immediately a look of great concern came over Midge's face, and before Fitz could go on to explain himself she interrupted him and said, "I hope it's enough. I know I'm not giving as much as I should. Nurses make good money here, but the cost of living is so much higher than it is in Haiti. I can't seem to give any more than a tithe. I'm hoping to do better next year. The need in the world is so great, and our church does so much good. I want to help all I can."
"Oh, don't worry," Fitz said. "You're doing just fine. We are very fortunate to have you as a part of our congregation."
With that, Fitz bid Midge a hasty good-bye and left as quickly as he could. He was deeply troubled by Midge's generosity. How can she live like that, Fitz wondered? Giving so much -- it's not practical. But what troubled him most was how much he was going to have to raise his own pledge.
Return to top
Scrap Pile
The Greatest Gift I Received in Ministry
by L. Doward McBain
"For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has but in everything she had, all she had to live on."
Mark 12:44
Our Bennett, Colorado, charge proved to be a surpassing experience. We lived in a tiny parsonage, worshiped in a tiny church, and served a tiny rural congregation. It was here we met the sickly but saintly Mrs. Rolf, a symbol of all the really good and sacrificial saints we have known through the years.
She was one of four devout parishioners who met with us for prayer each Thursday afternoon at the church, next door to the parsonage. She rarely missed. She came when she was well enough to stand, and soon we learned her story. She lived with her 12-year-old son, who was spending most of his summer herding sheep to buy school clothes for the coming fall. Mrs. Rolf's husband had left her several years earlier for reasons that never seemed clear. She was destitute and received meager relief from the community. If she had been the only member of the congregation, her strong Christian spirit was enough to make those few weeks in our first parish worthwhile.
Before we knew it the summer was gone; our last weekend had come and one more sermon was to be preached. Saturday night the Bennett people planned a going-away party. They brought many practical gifts for the young couple returning to seminary in Philadelphia -- kitchen utensils and enough canned good from the rural membership to last for many weeks. But Mrs. Rolf was not there.
The next morning the little church was packed for my farewell sermon, but our special friend was missing again. So shortly after the service, we finished our packing and decided we should package some groceries and drive the old Model A to "String Town," the poor section where Mrs. Rolf lived.
She answered my knock by a feeble call from her bed. She explained that she was too weak to get up, and regretted not being able to attend our party or the last worship service. She then hinted she was partly relieved, because she had no gift to give the minister and his wife. She asked me to pray for her son, and I did. Then before I left she said she remembered that she did have something to give. Would I promise to take it? Not being able to refuse her, I said yes. She told me where to find it, and I nervously moved to the other room.
It wouldn't be difficult to find, as the next room was the only other room in the house. I can see it as clearly today as in that summer of 1940. There was a small table with two chairs, a little potbelly stove, and a new lid-lifter she said the relief board had given her the previous week. Her cupboard amounted to three shelves on the far wall; like Mother Hubbard's cupboard, it was empty. Her gift was on the top ledge, she said. She must be wrong. But to be sure, I reached to the far right and slowly brought my hand back across the empty board until I quickly knew that she was right. There it was: a 25-cent piece.
I took it to her and said I could not accept it. She reminded me of my promise and said, "You must take it. It is all I have to give." I protested, but I took it. Her last words to me were enough for a lifetime. "Use it as you go back to seminary and prepare to be a good minister of God."
I do not know what happened to that 25 cents. I only know what happened to me. In many ways that quarter bought a minister. I have never been able to shake off her sacrifice. During the ensuing years we have many times been given large gifts, but nothing has affected me quite like the 25-cent piece I found on that ledge in a barren cottage in "String Town," Bennett, Colorado.
L. Doward McBain is a retired pastor from Berkeley, California.
Return to top
**********************************************
An Invitation to Send Stories
We are collecting personal stories for a third volume in the vision series, to be released in 2004. The new working title is Shining Moments: Visions of the Holy in Ordinary Lives. If you have any stories to share of your personal experience of the holy, please send them to jsumwalt@naspa.net.
New Book Released
We are happy to report that the second volume in the vision series, Sharing Visions: Divine Revelations, Angels, and Holy Coincidences, is now available from CSS Publishing Company. For more information about the book click here or visit the CSS website at http://www.csspub.com.
Special Pricing for StoryShare Subscribers
Sharing Visions retails for $19.95. CSS has graciously agreed to make the book available to StoryShare subscribers for just $11.97 (plus shipping & handling). To take advantage of this special pricing, you must use the special code SS40SV. Simply e-mail your order to orders@csspub.com or phone 1-800-241-4056. If you live outside the U.S., phone 419-227-1818.
Praise for Sharing Visions
Bishop Richard Wilke, creator of the Disciple Bible Study series, writes: "I am rejoicing as I read the testimonies in Sharing Visions. What an inspiration! I recall my father, an unemotional man, telling me that his mother (who had died some years before) appeared to him in a dream and gave him counsel on a difficult decision he was wrestling with."
Return to top
StoryShare, November 9, 2003, issue.
Copyright 2003 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., P.O. Box 4503, Lima, Ohio 45802-4503.
