I shall not want…
As I’ve gotten older, how I view what I really need has changed. When I was younger, my needs always felt so tangible. I could point at them or put my hands on them. It was a specific object, a certain relationship, or a particular happening. I need that. Funny thing is, when I have gotten that, I still didn’t have what I really needed. Or even crazier, when I didn’t get that, I still found I had what I needed. In seasons when I thought I had more than enough and seasons when I thought I had nothing, I still have always found I have had exactly what I need.
I remember years ago when Tonya and I were newlyweds. We were in seminary, working full-time at part-time pay, and had plenty of bills to pay. We were sinking. Money was tight. OK, there was no money. We were trying to figure out how we were going to make it through the month with no money coming in and too much money needing to go out. We had a plan. We had some antiques that we would sell to a local antique shop. It was the perfect plan God was going to use to provide for our need.
Except He didn’t provide for the need that way.
I still remember the guy in the shop laughing at the stuff we brought in. Or maybe he was laughing at us. Either way, he wasn’t interested.
Do you know how God provided for us instead?
No?
Me either. I just know He did.
There was another season early on in married life where things were tight. I just knew we were going under. This time there came an unexpected letter in the mail. It was a simple card from some relatives that said they loved us and wanted to bless us. In it was a check that covered the amount we really needed at the time. They had didn’t know what we were going through, but God did.
Sometimes God intervenes in a miraculous way to take care of a problem I have. Sometimes when I expect Him to show up and show out, I can’t see Him do anything at all. Yet, in both situations, I have always had everything I needed. I may not be as comfortable sometimes, but I have never lacked.
Paul in Philippians 4:10-19 talks about something similar. He says there are times when he has had an abundance, he’s lived in prosperity. There have been other times when he hasn’t had much at all. He’s experienced a full belly and lived hungry, too. But, he says that he has always had what he needed in order to do what God has called him to do. In this context, saying he’s been to both extremes, that he gladly proclaims, with what ever he has, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me!” How is that possible? Well, he answers that himself in verse 19. “And my God will supply all your needs, according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” Through Jesus you’ll always have enough.
Sometimes the shepherd in a dramatic way will rescue the sheep. He’ll rescue them from a thicket or save them from a wolf. A lot of times though it’s just the steady leadership of the shepherd that provides for the needs of the sheep, leading the sheep to a better place, helping them avoid the thickets all together. Some needs are obvious, others are unknown even to the sheep. The shepherd faithfully cares for His sheep. They don’t have to be anxious. They just need to trust and follow their shepherd.
Questions for Today
- When was a time you thought God was going to do something in a particular way, only to see that He did something different?
- Looking back, is there a time God met a need that you think He was meeting at the time?
- What are some needs you had that later you found were not needs at all?
- What does it mean to you when Paul says that God provides for our needs “out of the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus?”
Prayer for Today
Lord, let me walk in assurance after you. I know you can be trusted to care for my every need. Not every need I have is what I think it is. You know me, your sheep, and you know what I truly need. Help me rely on you, trusting you see what is best for me. Thank you for those moments you show out in a big way, miraculously providing for me. Thank you for those many moments unseen by my human eyes where you provide for me, and I can’t yet see it. Give me eyes more opened to observe your hand at work in my life and your constant provision.
Amen.
No responses yet