God: The Gift Giver

God is so generous....I have been meditating on how much God has given us in Christ. whew...

I would like to tell two stories of people who, because of God's generosity, were also able to be generous.

As most of you know I have the opportunity to invite other people into this ministry here in Ohio and this vision of discipleship. I want to share this vision and get people involved and one way to get people involved is through financial support. I get to trust God as He lays on people's hearts to give, therefore I am fully funded by others. It has been a challenging and rewarding endeavor to say the least. Often it is so easy for me to focus on the money instead of the hearts and souls of those I am in contact with. These two stories of my friends helped me to remember that I am a fisher of men not of dollars and that the blessing goes to the giver because it is a joy to give.

In North Carolina I had the opportunity to get to know a young couple that went to school where I did. Blake and Amber are their names. They are both 20 and 21 years old, newly married, and both students in college. I spent one summer with them both at a youth camp and was able to see how much the loved the Lord, the truth of His word, and people. Blake was always encouraging me to remember the Gospel and be willing to share it at all times. He is a great guy. Amber is equally as passionate and intentional with those opportunities. Over a month ago I sat down and had lunch with Amber. We were talking about discipleship and it's importance and she was encouraging me to be bold in getting to know people and I was encouraging her. She told me a of a friend who recently became a believer whom she was entering a discipling relationship with. I was so excited to hear her passion. It made me that much more excited about what I was going to do.

Right before I was about to leave Amber began to tell me a story. She said that she and Blake really wanted to give and support me but they simply were unable to do so. Blake had been looking for a job for a while and recently found an only semi-stable job in special needs work. While Amber was almost about to give birth to their first son and would soon be out of work. They had trouble making ends meet as it was. I completely understood their situation and wasn't dissappointed at all. But...Amber wasn't done with her story. She then continued to tell me that a week ago she was in a small car accident. No one was hurt and her car was only slightly damaged but still drove fine. So they filed insurance and got a check in the mail for repairs on thier vehicle. And Blake and Amber had decided not to fix their car and instead pledge to support me each month.

I was so surprised. Amber was just giddy. She said that it was an answer to prayer that they had been given extra money. And they knew that it was God giving to them so that they could give to me. And she was so happy to be able to give.

My second story is very similar. I became really good friends with two girls named Jennifer and Mary Ann last year. We all became good friends actually and were able to encourage each other and really build community. I haven't found friends like those two in a while. And when I was applying to go work with the Navigators and getting ready to move Jennifer and Mary Ann were so encouraging. We would pray together and they would listen while I would share my excitement and concerns throughout the whole thing. All during the summer I shared with them both about how things were going and how God was providing.

Over the summer, Mary Ann called me and was so excited to tell me a story. She was telling me of how she really didn't have the funds to support me because she had to pay for school but that she really wanted to do something. So one wednesday night she had gone before her home church in Georgia and gave a presentation on my behalf (without me knowing). She had asked her church to get involved as well. And they heard and responded by giving. She was so excited because the Lord had given her an opportunity to give through her home church! I was simply overwhelmed that she would do that. But I realized that it wasn't for me, it was because her heart was beating with the vision of discipleship to college students.

A couple weeks ago I recieved a letter in the mail from Jennifer. She had sent me some money with a card. I called her later that week and she was like "Oh Melissa, let me tell you this story!" Jennifer had been praying about how to support me. Unfortunately, this summer was not as fruitful as she was hoping from working. But she told me that she really wanted to give something to me, but simply could not. Then sometime in August she recieved a check in the mail from her job. Somehow she had missed a whole pay period last year. She told me on the phone that she was so excited because it was money she didn't know she had. She felt like the Lord hadn't just given her that money to spend but to give away as well. And she remembered her prayer for an opportunity to give to what God was doing her in Ohio. So she sent me that money in the mail and was thanking God for providing a way for her to tangibly get involved.

The cool thing is these aren't the only people who had this experience. I could tell you many other stories of families and individuals who gave out of their need or their abundance. And I also don't know many of the stories of how people have come to give to this ministry. These people weren't giving simply because they knew or loved me. They were giving because they loved what God was doing in people's hearts and wanted to be a part of it. They wanted to experience the blessing of generosity.

"for it is more blessed to give than recieve."

Praise the Lord!