This past week I camped overnight with my son in the Ouachita National Forest. I was surprised to encounter a couple with two young children ages 8 and 10 backpacking out the next morning. They had tried to hike a loop but because of recent flooding they could not find the trail that would bring them back to their car. They were now following our exit trail which lead in the opposite direction from their car. They were not lost in that they new exactly where they were headed. However, they were having to trust God for some means back to their vehicle. They knew that once they got out they would be easily probably 15 miles from where they wanted to be.
I had my van and we told them that we would gladly give them a ride back once we all got out. The road conditions were such that it took us nearly an hour to drive them back. They were incredibly grateful. We were literally an answer to their prayers. The husband at one point said, “I just asked the Lord to send us a saint of the church to bring us back to our car.” You might be thinking that this was a small miracle, but the odds were rather stacked against them. The Ouachita Trail has a reputation for being rather isolated. I read one man’s account of hiking its entire length (over 200 miles) and only encountering 4 people the entire time. We had a wonderful spirit lead conversation about the goodness of God and a variety of topics related to following God. I feel blessed to have met the Goodman family and that perhaps I am the one who was sent a saint of the church.
The following day in worship I got to listen to another amazing story of God’s providence. In short, the church I was visiting had the opportunity to higher a children’s ministry director. There was a problem though. They could not afford the salary. They had a very specific figure need to fill the gap to be able to hire the person they wanted. Prior to worship the elder met and prayed about the need. They decided that they really wanted to trust God and move forward despite not knowing how to raise the funds. During the worship service following their prayer meeting, someone gave exactly the amount they needed to cover this persons salary for the year. The truly amazing thing is that the check (which was several thousand dollars) came from a family that the church had been financially assisting. The church had cover several bills for the family, found them a car and helped them find work. This family who had been needy had just received a significant financial inheritance. They decided to tithe the inheritance to the church. The tithe was exactly the figure needed to cover the salary and they had no idea the church was even looking for the extra funds.
God is good. God works in ways we never anticipate. When God does so, please be sure and share the story. I know these story strengthened my faith and challenge me to trust more. I know you stories can minister to someone else. You never know when you or your story might be the answer to someone else’s prayer.
I love reading testimonies about God’s providence! I am currently struggling financially to pay for school but I know God will provide, I just have to continue to trust in him. Sometimes its hard because sometimes I ask myself God why can’t you provide the way you provided for that person? Why can’t someone anonymously give me a check with the right amount of money that I need? God why are you taking long to provide? It is sooo hard to let God take control of things because we tend to want things now but everything happens in God’s timing. I am just waiting on what God is going to do to provide because I need to registered for school soon. Thank you for posting these stories.