Hello ,

Exercise your faith - Installment #1 - Dwell on God's amazing abilities, by recalling what He's already done in the past.

My wife and I were "baby-Christians" when it happened. She had only been in her wheelchair for a couple of years, and we had a new baby that was not even a year old yet. 

I was out of work (I haven't always been a pastor), was trying to provide for my family, winter was coming on, and we owed more than $600 on an electric bill that we couldn't afford to pay. 

To say that I felt "desperate" would be an understatement. 

We had recently learned about paying tithe (giving 10% back to the Lord from any increases that we gained). 

It was a concept that made no sense to me. 

How could we afford to give back 10 percent of any income that we had, when we couldn't pay our bills on the income that we were receiving? 

I wrestled with understanding it from a logical stand-point. 

My wife (on the other hand), has always been strong in the "faith" department. Paying tithe not only made sense to her, but NOT paying it was inconceivable to her. 

Our electric service was about to be shut off and I was feeling pretty desperate. In my human, logical mind I came up with a plan that might get us a little further down the road with our electric bill. Here's what I came up with:

I would take what meager tithe we had, call the electric company, tell them the situation, and apply that small amount to our bill. It might buy us a couple of weeks, and I was willing to take the risk.

I presented this plan to my wife, and her eyes welled up with tears. 

"Mike, that's God's money. We can't take God's money and try to pay for part of our electric bill.  It's not right.  It's not honest. God has told us to prove Him. Can't we just take Him at His word and see how He comes through for us?"

I was incensed at what I considered to be such a foolish plan.

Was money just going to appear out of thin air? We had electric baseboard heat in our home, and the weather had turned considerably colder. 

The electric was going to be turned-off THAT DAY!

I looked into the eyes of my spouse. Her gaze was pleading, and it put a lump in my throat. 

I told her, "Okay."  

I knelt down by her wheelchair while she held our baby daughter, and I prayed a very simple prayer. 

"Lord, You told us to prove you by giving you back 10% of what our increase is. God, I don't see this. It makes no sense to me; but I'm going to prove You. I don't know what You can do, but I'm at the end of my rope. We need to keep this electric on, and I'm out of options. Lord, this tithe is Yours. No matter what happens, we're giving it to You. Please help us."

I got up from my knees, and just stood there for a moment taking it all in.  

Literally, a minute later the phone rang. It was a representative from the power authority in the state where we lived. They had a special program in place for disabled citizens of the and wondered if there was anything that she needed that they could assist us with.

My spouse explained our situation to them over the phone. 

"How much is your over-due electric bill, my dear?" the kind lady said to my wife. My wife told her the exact amount (down to the penny). 

"Consider that bill paid in full," the woman told my spouse. 

I watched intently as a tear meandered down the cheek of my bride. She choked out, "Okay.  Thank-you SO MUCH!"

Do you think that my faith was increased that cold winter day in 1994? 

To say that I became a believer in the power of God would have been an understatement. 

Now, has God always answered my prayers in ways that I wanted Him to? 

Absolutely not; but when I am tempted to try to take life's burdens onto myself, I recall times when God has shown His faithfulness in amazing ways to our family. 

God has ALWAYS been faithful, but sometimes it helps me to specifically reflect on some of the incredible things that He has done for us. 

It's a faith-building exercise. 

Here's a passage of scripture that should be on every Christian's refrigerator (in my humble opinion). 

Lamentations 3:22-23

We exercise our faith by recalling all the ways that God has been faithful to us in the past. 

How has God been specifically been faithful to you, and how can this help you to trust Him more today?

Have a great day and God bless!

Pastor Mike / The Open Word