Prayers to Hold Us Up

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze…Since you are precious in My sight…and I love you.” Isaiah 43:2-4 NIV

I love special days. And I love celebrating on those days. In our busy life and with Floyd traveling a lot, that wasn’t always possible. But we tried. Often we had to celebrate on an alternate day, but we always celebrated! God loves celebrations. You see that all through the Word. He’s a God of celebration! When we started our journey in marriage, we had no idea what was in store for us!

So many memories have come flooding back about our beginning. I want to share one of them with you. I was 18, Floyd was 21. We were “young” in so many ways. We did a lot of growing up and maturing together after we got married. We were so idealistic, and out to conquer the world for Jesus! Our plan was to leave three days after our wedding to lead teams in outreach in the Caribbean islands. I have to admit that it wasn’t the wisest plan—I wouldn’t recommend it to other newlywed couples.

As was so often the case through our years together, we were trusting the Lord for finances for that outreach…sometimes we were trusting right up to the deadline of departure. We were getting organized to leave when a dear lady turned up at the door. She attended Floyd’s dad’s church, and knew we were leaving on a missions venture. She walked in and handed us a shoebox. She explained that she worked as a waitress and she put all her tips in that box. It was mostly coins with a few dollar bills here and there.

She went on to explain how she had always wanted to be a missionary, but that wasn’t how things had gone for her life. She wanted to give us her shoebox of tips as an investment in the Kingdom for the outreach we were going on. I can tell you that many tears flowed as she shared all this. It was so humbling. It was actually really hard to accept.

Many times through the years as we’ve served the Lord in various ways, I’ve thought of that dear lady. She has been part of everything we’ve done. God treasured her investment, and someday she’ll reap an eternal reward! It was a special beginning to our life together—something we never forgot! We often prayed for her to be rewarded in ways only God could do.

I felt so strongly encouraged to share about this lady and her shoebox gift. I hope it blesses you. It reminds me of the story in the Bible of the widow who gave two small copper coins. Jesus told the disciples that she gave more than the rich, because it was all she had!

Thank you for your prayers that are carrying me through. I’m so grateful, and feel supported by them. Two friends came to pray for me yesterday, and we thanked the Lord for all of you praying around the world. Your prayers have protected me from the rivers and flames. I’m without Floyd now, but I continue on the journey the Lord started us on, on our wedding day. I’m so grateful for the years we had together.

Father, protect us from the rivers and flames. Bless the special memories we hold of dear ones who are with You now. Show us how to selflessly give, even when we are needy ourselves. Amen.