project thessalonica: what i learned, part 2
Money. Part 2 is all about moola. And what a bummer since I'm such a tightwad.
About a week after we got back from our trip, I was sitting at my kitchen table eating some toast, and God was like, You hardly give anything to missions.
And I was like, What tha... Where'd THAT come from?
And He was like, Remember when I made your wildest dreams come true?
And I remembered last year when I wrote about my wildest dreams coming true, and how since then I've looked at my job as a blessing God gave me, to bless me, so I can, in turn, buy a whole bunch of stuff for me, and make myself financially comfortable. And I've been all, Well thank You, God, for making my life so easy and stuff.
But that morning at the table, I realized that this job isn't all about me. God gave it to me so I can give back to Him.
So what I'm trying to say is, I've been stingy like Scrooge, and I've only given God as much money as I felt comfortable with giving.
And it pricked my tightwad heart to pieces. I sat there with my budget in hand, and was sad to see God down at the bottom of it instead of up at the top.
So I was, like, crying and all slobbery, and I told God He could have whatever He wanted. I would, essentially, dedicate my money to Him, and He could let me know how He wanted it spent. And I wouldn't buy a single extra thing that I didn't need. If God wanted me to have anything extra, He could drop it in my lap.
And that was that. God dealt with my heart about my money, and I'm giving more.
Then the next day something happened.
I have a car. It's paid for, and I like it. It isn't really cut out for my line of work though. A truck would be way better for me. But a truck is one of those extra things that I decided not to spend my money on. It would be nice, but it isn't an absolute necessity.
So the next day, I was at work, talking to my client's housekeeper, and I told her that Moma was selling her truck and that it was too bad I couldn't just buy it.
And then we chitchatted a little more, and I left.
And then about 5 minutes later, my client (God love him) called me up and was like, Run down to the office, there's a check waiting for you. Go buy your mom's truck.
His housekeeper had called him and told him about the truck. That check was for $3,000.
So basically, a truck landed in my lap.
And you can say, well what a happy coincidence, but you'd be wrong. There was nothing coincidental about it at all.
God said, Give to Me, little chicky, and I'll take care of you. That's the way I roll.
And then I was, like, crying and all slobbery again. Because investing your money in God has the best returns.
And because sometimes I wonder why in the world a God so great would even bother with me.
And that's part 2.
I loved going on this mission trip. I loved Thessaloniki. I loved Greece. I loved the missionaries. Another missions trip is in my future. My heart has been pulled, and squeezed, and tenderized, and changed, and I love that too. And right now we're having our Missions Conference at church, and I've been listening to the missionaries talk, and I want to go too. I wish I was them. I want a heart like their's; a heart that's ready to take whatever risk, and sacrifice whatever it takes to just give their all to God.
And I love the things God said to me about the trip. I like when God talks.
Love,
Me
About a week after we got back from our trip, I was sitting at my kitchen table eating some toast, and God was like, You hardly give anything to missions.
And I was like, What tha... Where'd THAT come from?
And He was like, Remember when I made your wildest dreams come true?
And I remembered last year when I wrote about my wildest dreams coming true, and how since then I've looked at my job as a blessing God gave me, to bless me, so I can, in turn, buy a whole bunch of stuff for me, and make myself financially comfortable. And I've been all, Well thank You, God, for making my life so easy and stuff.
But that morning at the table, I realized that this job isn't all about me. God gave it to me so I can give back to Him.
So what I'm trying to say is, I've been stingy like Scrooge, and I've only given God as much money as I felt comfortable with giving.
And it pricked my tightwad heart to pieces. I sat there with my budget in hand, and was sad to see God down at the bottom of it instead of up at the top.
So I was, like, crying and all slobbery, and I told God He could have whatever He wanted. I would, essentially, dedicate my money to Him, and He could let me know how He wanted it spent. And I wouldn't buy a single extra thing that I didn't need. If God wanted me to have anything extra, He could drop it in my lap.
And that was that. God dealt with my heart about my money, and I'm giving more.
Then the next day something happened.
I have a car. It's paid for, and I like it. It isn't really cut out for my line of work though. A truck would be way better for me. But a truck is one of those extra things that I decided not to spend my money on. It would be nice, but it isn't an absolute necessity.
So the next day, I was at work, talking to my client's housekeeper, and I told her that Moma was selling her truck and that it was too bad I couldn't just buy it.
And then we chitchatted a little more, and I left.
And then about 5 minutes later, my client (God love him) called me up and was like, Run down to the office, there's a check waiting for you. Go buy your mom's truck.
His housekeeper had called him and told him about the truck. That check was for $3,000.
So basically, a truck landed in my lap.
And you can say, well what a happy coincidence, but you'd be wrong. There was nothing coincidental about it at all.
God said, Give to Me, little chicky, and I'll take care of you. That's the way I roll.
And then I was, like, crying and all slobbery again. Because investing your money in God has the best returns.
And because sometimes I wonder why in the world a God so great would even bother with me.
And that's part 2.
I loved going on this mission trip. I loved Thessaloniki. I loved Greece. I loved the missionaries. Another missions trip is in my future. My heart has been pulled, and squeezed, and tenderized, and changed, and I love that too. And right now we're having our Missions Conference at church, and I've been listening to the missionaries talk, and I want to go too. I wish I was them. I want a heart like their's; a heart that's ready to take whatever risk, and sacrifice whatever it takes to just give their all to God.
And I love the things God said to me about the trip. I like when God talks.
Love,
Me
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