So many things come to my mind, when I think about how God has blessed my life. God redeemed me from a sinner to a saint. He gave me a new life in Him, forgiveness of all of my sins, a new heart, and a renewed mind. He baptized me in His Holy spirit and filled me with love, power, authority and faith that only come from Him. God has blessed me with good health, guidance, protection, favor, a godly husband, a healthy pregnancy, and a healthy baby girl that is on her way into the world. Even when my circumstances test my faith, I always know that God is with me, and He is going to work all things out for my good (Romans 8:28). I think that it is a helpless feeling not to walk with the Lord. I can recall dark times in my past when I was lost and out of control. I was not at peace. Having a relationship with God has filled my heart with peace, no matter what goes on around me, because I know I am His daughter, and I know He will take care of me. God always answers my prayers. He listens, and He provides. He is my provider, my Jehovah Jireh!
This may not seem like much of a trial to some people, but I recently struggled with something difficult in my life. My husband and I had three dogs. We had adopted two of them within the past year and a half, and the two that we adopted were a handful. They loved each other, but often caused a lot of trouble for us, as they began exhibiting behavioral problems. After trying to solve the problem on our own, we found a professional trainer. After our dogs received training, we continued to work with them. They improved some, but two things became clear. One thing that was clear was that our two dogs did better when they were separated. Another thing that was clear was that one of these two dogs did not like children. Right before I discovered I was pregnant, we began considering finding them new homes. We asked around, but we had difficulty finding anyone who was interested in them. After I became pregnant, we knew that we would have to find new homes for them before we moved in to our new house at the end of August. We knew we wouldn’t be able to handle three dogs and a baby. We knew that it would be hard on us financially to have three dogs, and we didn’t want to take the chance of having our two dogs destroy our new home or possibly attack our child (as I mentioned, one of them does not like children).
Cutting to the chase, we searched and searched. I sent out mass e-mail’s to friends and family. My husband asked people at his office if they might be interested. We posted classifieds on five different websites. We contacted rescue groups, animal sanctuaries, and shelters that were full to capacity. It was a difficult and stressful situation that honestly looked hopeless at times. I would feel doubt creep up in my mind, and I wondered if we would ever find homes for them. During this time, God reassured me that I had no need to worry. As a matter of fact, some of the specific things that God said to me during this time were, “I will open the right doors, while closing the wrong ones. Don’t worry about your circumstances. I am able. Trust in Me.” Even though our situation looked bleak, I knew that God is bigger than our circumstances. I also knew that when God tells me something, I can believe what He says, because He is faithful, and He always keeps His word and His promises.
One day I was washing dishes and doubt started to creep in to my mind again. That was the moment I said out loud, “Ok. That’s enough! I’m not going to live like that. I have victory and authority in Christ, and I am going to walk in faith.” Having faith one day and wavering in doubt the next is not walking in faith. Walking in faith means that we believe against all odds. From that day forward I started praising and thanking God that our dogs (Bella and Uriah) were going to be adopted. Time passed and people began to e-mail us asking about Uriah. Then, I started praising and thanking God that our dogs had already been adopted. When people asked if our dogs had been adopted I would say, “Not yet, but I’m believing by faith that their new homes are on the way.” Soon after that, Bella and Uriah were both adopted, within three weeks of one another.
God had said to me during this time, “I am your Provider, and I will provide for you.” I knew that God would make a way where it seemed like there wasn’t a way, but the fact that He provided exactly what my husband and I prayed for brought me to my knees in thankful adoration of my awesome Lord and Savior. My husband and I always wanted Uriah to go to a home in the country where she would have lots of land to run around on and a family that would give her all of the attention that she longed for. Uriah is a big dog and she really needed the space and freedom to live a full life. She is also a very sweet dog and sometimes did not get all of the attention that she deserved with two other dogs in the house. Well, the couple that adopted Uriah are very nice and Uriah took to them right away. Not only did she immediately bond with them, but the couple lives out in the country on thirty acres of land, with a pond. The husband is retired and the wife spends a lot of time outdoors. After Uriah was adopted, the wife wrote to me about how much Uriah was enjoying her new home, and she even had a couple of other dogs to play with, since their children brought their dogs to visit from time to time.
As for Bella, we knew that she would have to go to a home where there were no children. We also wanted her to go to a home where she could be given a lot of attention and affection, since Bella was very attached to me and constantly wanted my love. Bella was adopted by a married woman who never had any children. The woman spends a good deal of time alone, since her husband is on the road a lot, and we knew that Bella would become her close companion. The woman who adopted Bella is also an avid animal lover and dalmation lover (which is what Bella is), and she has had five different dalmations over the years. She also lives in the country on a good deal of land. I want to point out that when Bella was adopted recently, we had only two weeks left to find her a home, before we move. The fact that time was running out was stressful, but we knew God would come through. I kept saying to people, “I don’t know how it’s going to work out. I just know that it will. God is going to provide for us.” It was the desire of my heart for both of our dogs to go to good homes, and God knew this. Ten days before Bella was adopted, God said to me, “The desire of your heart will be granted. Trust in me. I am with you always.”
God provided everything we asked for, and everything that we believed Him for! This may not seem like a huge issue to some people, but it was a circumstance that we faced that was difficult for us, and we stayed in faith. It’s not easy to stay in faith sometimes, but we have to. We have to because God is good, and He is Jehovah Jireh! He is God our provider! Psalm 11:5 says, “He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever.” In Genesis 22, when Abraham was given the command by the Lord to sacrifice his only son, Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son. Abraham walked in faith, even though he didn’t know what the outcome would be. He trusted God, despite his circumstances. When God saw that Abraham feared Him and was obedient to God’s command, He provided a ram for Abraham to sacrifice, in place of his son. “So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, ‘On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided (Genesis 22:13-14).’”
No matter what you are facing, trust God. Put your faith in the One who is Faithful. God is able! “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged (Deuteronomy 31:8)." When we entertain fear, worry and doubt, when they creep into our minds, then we are saying to God and to ourselves that we don’t trust God and we don’t believe He will provide for us. When we give in to fear, worry and doubt, then we give the devil a foothold to bring us down into despair and we allow the enemy to discourage us and defeat us. “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us (Romans 8:37).” It’s important that we remember that we have authority over the devil and over all of our circumstances. We have victory in Jesus Christ, and we can celebrate the victory while it is on its way. If we walk in faith, we do not have to see the victory, in order to believe that we will be victorious (Hebrews 11:1).
“And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus (Philipians 4:19).” Praise be to God, Jehovah Jireh!
