Category: Trusting in God

Sunday, April 21, was a day I will always remember. It was the day I lost the home I was living in at the time. But I also remember it as a day that God took care of me in so many ways.

My plans for that day were simple. I needed to run a few errands, go home, shower, have a bite for lunch, and pick up another believer in my area to drive to a home fellowship meeting that afternoon. On one of my stops, I got a call from another believer in the area whose landlord was having some work done on his house. This believer wanted to get away from all the noise in the house, so he was hoping we could meet for a quick lunch at a local restaurant. I agreed to his invitation. This only involved a small change in my plans, in that I needed to leave home about an hour earlier to meet him, rather than having my lunch at home. We met for lunch, and as we were leaving the restaurant, we heard the alarm at the fire station just across the street. At the time, I had no idea that the alarm was for a fire taking place at the apartment building where I lived.

From there, I went to pick up my other believer friend, and we drove to the fellowship meeting, about an hour away. After the meeting, we drove toward home and decided to get supper together. After supper, I drove her back home, then proceeded back to my home. This was around sunset, and as I entered the parking lot, I first noticed an unusual number of people outside the apartment building. I then noticed that the side of the building closest to the parking lot appeared to have collapsed. As I looked closer, I saw that all the apartment windows in that portion of the building were boarded up, including mine. I finally asked one of my neighbors what had happened, and he calmly explained there had been a fire in the building about six hours earlier. At that point, I realized that the alarm I heard earlier was for my apartment building. And I realized that had I not left home when I did to meet my friend, I most likely would have been home when the fire broke out.

The neighbor I spoke to suggested that I go over to the nearby community center, where an American Red Cross counseling team was stationed to help residents affected by the fire. These people were just wonderful. After checking my name on their list of residents, one of the counselors explained what she understood to be the cause of the fire, and that my apartment was either damaged by the fire itself, by the smoke, or by water used by the firefighters to prevent the spread of the fire. She also said that not one person was injured. In the midst of everything, knowing this fact was such a blessing to me, as it freed my mind to focus on other details. I thought to myself that because it was a beautiful early Sunday afternoon when the fire occurred, many of the residents may have been outside, just living life.

The conversation with the counselor turned to getting some of my immediate needs taken care of. First, she asked if I needed somewhere to stay that night. I believed the best place for me to stay temporarily was at my brother’s house. He was relatively close to where I worked at the time. I immediately called him, told him what happened, and asked if staying at his house was available. The counselor provided me with a generic gift card, so I could purchase certain clothing and other necessities. She was also able to arrange for an emergency replacement of some prescription medicines I was taking at the time. Finally, she reminded me to contact my insurance company in the morning to handle my long-term housing needs. There was an opportunity to witness to her, which I’ll elaborate on later.

After spending the first night at my brother’s house, I went to work at my job in the morning. My boss actually already knew about the fire from the local newspaper. He was very understanding and allowed me to take breaks during the day to make phone calls to my insurance agents and other people regarding my housing situation. I reached out to everyone in my fellowship to inform them and to ask for their prayers.

One of the benefits of my insurance policy was to provide temporary replacement housing for up to one year. The agent I spoke with took down some information, noting where I might like to live, and said she’d call me as soon as she had any prospects. My sister-in-law also looked online for rentals in the area. By Friday, April 26, five days after the fire, she found something that she thought would meet my need. It was a fully furnished, one-bedroom apartment on the ground floor of someone’s house. I met the prospective landlord after work that Friday. He gave me the tour of the place, and I was amazed that the apartment included a large TV, with cable, and a kitchen full of dishes and utensils well beyond what I needed. We discussed the rent amount, and I agreed to move in the next day.

In looking back at the events of April 21 and the week that followed, I clearly see what God has done for me. First, He fully protected me by working in my believer friend’s heart to invite me for lunch, thus physically getting me out of harm’s way when the fire broke out. For this to happen, I also had to trust that God was working in the situation for me to change my plans.

Proverbs 3:5,6:
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Second, learning that nobody was injured by the fire blessed me by easing my mind and enabling me to focus on other details. The American Red Cross counselor I spoke with almost seemed surprised at how calm and composed I was. This opened a door for me to share God’s Word. I recall sharing II Timothy 1:7:

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

This helped her to understand that even faced with a difficult situation, I was able to stay focused and avoid succumbing to emotions.

Third, my immediate basic needs were taken care of, starting with shelter. This brings to mind Matthew 6:31-33:

Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Fourth, in a relatively short period of time, I found temporary replacement housing which was more than sufficient for my needs. This issue occupied my mind for a few days after the fire. But I knew that my prayers, as well as those of the local believers, would bring deliverance.

Philippians 4:6:
Be careful [Be anxious] for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

We have a great, big, wonderful God. And it’s just so awesome how He takes care of us in all of life’s situations.

My father was a Baptist, and I was growing up as Roman Catholic because of the school I attended. When I first took my Foundational Class in my country back in the eighties, I was still going to my Catholic church in the early morning rather than later, around 10:30, so I could go to the Branch meeting available in my area. I loved the class, but all my life I was a Catholic, and it was not easy for the change, because I had friends there and I could not leave them. But then came a time to repeat my class, and that was the changing moment in my life and my walk with God. The Word of God started making more sense to me, like how in the Book of Ephesians, chapter 1, verse 18 it says, “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened….” I just stopped going to my morning Catholic Mass to make myself available for anything The Way Ministry made available at that time. We were encouraged to read more of the Word, and if we did so for only three months, we would not recognize ourselves. I did, and saw myself as a new person with a new perspective. The book I read the most was The Bible Tells Me So, chapters titled “Are You Limiting God?” and “The Synchronized Life.”

I have many incidents in my life with The Way Ministry, but I would share one where I trusted God instead of the reality of the world.

One day coming out of the grocery heading home, I noticed I had been missing my wallet for the past two hours. I checked everywhere in the house and went back to my car, but I couldn’t find it. Everybody in the house was in panic mode, telling me to call my banks and credit card companies. It was not the best option for me because I had IDs, and many required me to go stand in lines, so I decided not to go with my family’s option but to trust God in the situation. I told them, “Let’s believe God for the situation, and everything will be fine.” It sounded crazy, but our God is bigger than any challenges we may face in our life. Three days later, I received a call from the post office that they had something for me. First, I didn’t think about my wallet because there were no phone numbers in it. When I got there, the lady told me they had my wallet and explained to me how they got it. A lady found it in the parking lot of the store where I was shopping that day, put it in the envelope, and mailed it to them. I asked myself, “How did they find my home phone number?” But our God can work in people for us. Maybe they used the yellow pages and located my name and found my number. I got my wallet, I avoided DMV lines, and all my credit cards were there. God can and will do anything for us when we believe Him and trust His Word.

Recently something similar happened. While I was walking in the morning around 7:30, I stopped in the bank to deposit some checks and continued my walking. Forty minutes later, my wife asked where I was. I told her that I had been doing my walking. She told me that somebody brought my wallet home; he had found it at the bank. I didn’t even know that I had left it around the ATM machine, because the bank wasn’t open. Our God is so big that we can’t even imagine what He can do for us (Malachi 3:10,11).

Our God is wonderful; so is His Word.

I moved to a new area from out of state to take a new job. This job was an advancement in my career, which I had been working toward. Not long after I started my new job, two coworkers invited me to their household fellowship. I began to attend fellowship faithfully and not long after was able to take the Foundational Class two times in an eight-week period. I was so thrilled with this knowledge from God’s Word that I signed up for the Word Over the World Ambassador program. After learning how good God is, my only logical conclusion was to tell as many people as I could. Now, within six months of taking this job, I found myself leaving it for the advancement of God’s Word.

I was packing my car, preparing for our fellowship’s trip together to the Rock of Ages. On one of my trips carrying stuff to the car, a bee flew down from the rafters of the garage and stung me on the side of the face. I had not been stung since I was about eight years old. That time I was taken to the hospital because of swelling and because I passed out. This time, I went into the house, ran cold water on my face, and prayed. Then I kept packing my car, occasionally checking myself to find no swelling and no ill effect, except the tiny red hole where I had been stung.

As I was working, I realized it was getting very close to noon. I had to get to the bank to close my bank account. On my way to the bank, the clutch went out on my car. I recognized it immediately, jumped out, and hitchhiked the rest of the way to the bank and made it there before it closed. When I got back to my car, I headed south of town, limping my car to a local repair shop. It was a junkyard that did full restorations and repairs on the type of car I had. When I arrived, I rolled right into their service building.

I knew the two men that worked there. I had been there a couple of times before, looking for parts for my car. I told the owner I needed a clutch put in. He said, “We’re closed.” (His coworker was shuffling around the building, closing doors and turning off lights.) This car’s engine was located in the back of the car. We were each kneeling on one knee behind the car with the engine door up as I was explaining my situation to him. I explained to him that I was moving out of town at the end of the day, I had emptied my bank account, and all of my necessary worldly possessions were inside of my car. He said, “We’re closed.”

I then said, “Okay, this is what’s really happening….” I explained to him that I was leaving to go to Ohio to be trained and sent out to speak God’s Word. I do not recall all of the things I said to him about the goodness of God and my commissioning to stand and speak for Him, but I remember distinctly concluding my explanation saying, “And my adversary, the Devil, is trying to stop me.” He kept looking at me as he yelled to his coworker, “Hey, George, we’re putting a clutch in over here.”

I was on the road less than an hour later.

Throughout my life, I had always known that God loved me and cared about me, even though I recognized I didn’t always live a godly lifestyle. The Foundational Class showed me from God’s Word how much God loved me and how He is good always. For years I had heard people say that God did evil things to people to teach them lessons. This never seemed right to me. Now the ministry showed me from God’s own Word how good He is. So the attacks on my life that day were not “God testing me” to see if I would do His will or “signs from heaven” to stop me from making a commitment to the ministry. Instead, this experience confirmed what I had learned from God’s Word in the last few weeks—that with God I can have victory no matter the circumstances, and speaking the Word brings results!

Isaiah 40:31 [The Amplified Bible]:
But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.

What an honor it is to be a part of a ministry that teaches the greatness of God and His Word ever so clearly, showing you the keys to walking the aligned path that God has graciously supplied us, with blessings on top of blessings day after day. Where does one begin to show gratitude for what He has done for us? In one year alone, I have watched as God has fulfilled my life beyond belief.

Ecclesiastes 3:11:
He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.

God has a plan for us all. Since the beginning of time, He has known everything that has happened and is to come for the rest of eternity! It is our job to trust in Him and thank Him for helping to keep us on that straight and narrow path that He has provided for us.

Being in the military, I’ve seen that a career is made through advancement by working diligently and standing out among your fellow service members. As a part of the household of God, we learn that we are all members in particular as we each play our own essential part in the Body of Christ. The same applies to any job, team, or ensemble. In the navy, advancement is done through job-specific testing exams and annual evaluations issued by your superiors, who rank you based on your work ethic and leadership skills, determining if you have what it takes to hold the responsibilities of the next rank.

Every day I go into work with an “I can do/Christ in me” mind-set, giving diligently and selflessly in each task that is assigned to me. As you walk with your love of God shining brightly, people can undoubtedly see that light as you immediately make any environment you’re in thrive. Through my living to give and driving to excel, my superiors recognized that and fought to ensure I earned the evaluation that I deserved to set me up for success as I prepared for my next exam, believing to score high enough to advance to the next rank.

After calculating each individual’s yearly progress, work ethic, and qualifications, I was blessed to receive the number one evaluation for my rank in my squadron! What an achievement to be recognized in such a manner, to be considered the top all-around professional at what I do. Now I could confidently prepare for my exam, knowing that I was ready to hold the responsibilities of the next rank.

II Peter 3:8 [The Amplified Bible]:
Nevertheless, do not let this one fact escape you, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day.

God’s timing is impeccable. As I got ready to transfer to my next command, it was also time for me to decide whether or not I wanted to reenlist for another term of service. I love serving my country, and God sure has helped make my experience greater than any other. I know without a doubt that this is the path He needs me on, so I agreed to sign for another contract. Well with no surprise, God supplied again, and for the first time in eight years, my superiors offered my job a reenlistment bonus—right in time for me to reap the benefits!

Two days before my reenlistment date, my chief called me back into work, stating that it was very urgent and to come in wearing a clean uniform. Typically, this is not something I’d want to hear, but knowing that there was nothing I had to be worried about, I went back in, speaking in tongues for whatever God had in store for me. As I got into work, my commanding officer was there to congratulate and meritoriously promote me to the next rank. What an honor this was! For my command of 1,200 people, I was 1 of 12 people to get advanced to the next rank and 1 of 4 for my specific rank. A meritorious promotion is simply just that. My hard work and will to give and serve stood out among the rest, and my chain of command believed that I earned a new rank without having to take and see how well I did on an exam.

Timing could not have been better. By getting promoted, this also increased my bonus when I reenlisted two days later, and God continued to let the blessings pour in! If I hadn’t gotten promoted until after I reenlisted, my bonus would have stayed the same as before, but God was able to provide exceeding abundantly above (Ephesians 3:20) for me. As we live with “Ephesians 3:20/20 vision,” we will see everything that God is able to do for us each day.

In just a few short weeks, all of these things came to pass. This isn’t even a dent in my list of victories, and I am so grateful to be a part of a ministry that shows how to live an abundant life as we walk in love day by day. Without being raised in The Way Ministry, I most certainly would not be where I am today, nor have the relationship with God that I do. I look forward to someday raising a family in the Word the same way I was, and to continue to watch just how great God works.

I John 4:4:
…because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

We Can Rely on Him

Our heavenly Father is always good and willing to meet our every need. He reminds us in Psalms 84:11 that He will never withhold any good thing from us. It thrills my heart to know we have such an awesome Dad and that we can always rely on Him with our whole heart, soul, and mind.

The company I was working with at one time closed their doors, and I was faced with no job! I started feeding my mind with negative thoughts. What was I going to do? How long would it take to find a job? Fear started to sink in, but I was reminded in Psalms 118:6 that the Lord is on my side and I am not to fear anything. God also reminds us in II Timothy 1:7 that He has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

I got clear and concerned and contacted another believer. I shared my situation with them, and both of us agreed we would pray every day and believe together for God to work mightily in this situation. I continued to claim one of many promises in God’s Word, Ephesians 3:20. Within a couple of weeks my God supplied that job, and He was able to do exceeding abundantly above all that I could ask or think!

I’m happy to share I’m still employed with this company and continue to stay thankful for God’s goodness and mercy. What a wonderful God we have; He is always good and is ready and willing to supply our every need!

Trust God in Every Situation

There I was in the left lane of a seven-lane highway. All of a sudden, we started to come to a screeching halt, but were not quite stopped. As I tried to pick my speed back up, my car stalled and my steering wheel locked up. I immediately began speaking in tongues and did the best I could. I pressed on the gas and turned the steering wheel even though neither were functioning. I told God that I just needed to get in the right lane…safely.

Well, I managed to drift all the way to the right lane without anyone hitting me! That was victory number one. I had a moment of doubt sitting there, thinking, If only I had a cell phone to call someone. But I quickly regained my believing. I had no idea what was going on, but I knew that cars need oil, so I got out and checked my oil. Just as I saw that my oil levels were good, a man pulled up in front of me.

As the man stepped out of his van, I realized he had a medical condition that kept him from walking on his own. He braced himself against his van, then the hood of my car. He knew exactly what was going on with my car. First, he had me put it in neutral as he pushed my car to the outside shoulder of the road. Yes, you heard me correctly. This man who couldn’t walk on his own pushed my huge Crown Victoria to the shoulder. Quickly he had my car up and running. When I tried to get his information to thank him and repay him in some way, he told me to pay it forward.

In the midst of a superhighway where no one knew where I was, God was faithful to meet my every need, because this ministry has taught me from a youth to trust God in every situation.

I went to my first Way Ministry fellowship around December of 1985, took my first Foundational Class in the summer of 1986, and took the Advanced Class in the summer of 1988. My life has been abundantly packed with God’s grace and blessings throughout all these years as a result of the how-to teachings of God’s Word by The Way Ministry. Yet, through all these many amazing blessings, there has been one theme that shines through when I consider my personal relationship with God. And that is in the category of finding something important that has been lost.

I believe the precedent for this aspect of my relationship with God was set in 1988 when I went out as a Word Over the World (WOW) Ambassador. I worked for a car dealership, detailing cars. I was twenty years old. Perhaps my most prized possession at this time in my life was a gold and sapphire high school class ring my mother had bought for me when I was in tenth grade. She knew I’d loved the class ring design since I was a small boy, and it was a big financial challenge at that time for her to buy this for me. When she gave it to me, she asked me to promise that I would wear it and that I would not give it to “some girl” to wear or put on a necklace. I promised this to her and kept that promise. I wore that ring every day for years until it didn’t fit anymore.

So, one morning I went to work. As usual, I changed into my work clothes on arriving. I had been advised not to wear the ring at work because some of the chemicals could damage the gold. I removed the ring and put it in the left front pocket of my street pants and hung them on a hook where we changed clothes, and I went to work. When the work day ended, I headed home, excited to see what the rest of the day would hold.

I arrived to find my fellow WOW Ambassadors not at home, and shortly after I came in, I realized I wasn’t wearing my ring. My mind often works with pictures. I immediately pictured putting the ring in my pocket. I’d not changed out of my work clothes before leaving work that day, so I went to my bedroom and got the other pants. But when I reached into the pocket, the ring was gone. I felt a familiar lump in my throat. I can’t recall if I prayed the first time then or after I went to my car, but I went out and searched my car for the ring. I crawled down on the floorboards, looked under the seats, searched front and back and in the cracks of the seats. No ring.

I went back inside, trying to calm myself, speaking in tongues, and focusing on believing to find that ring. As I considered this, the experience of another believer came to my mind. My brother had recently gotten married. He and his wife married on the East Coast and promptly moved to California. His wife had a set of china. She really loved it, but it was missing one of its eight bowls. She planned to try to find a replacement. As they prepared to move, she packed up the china and mailed it to her mother in the Midwest, who would then mail it on to California when the time was right. Meanwhile, my sister-in-law began to look for a replacement bowl. She checked stores, suppliers, and even the manufacturer. She learned that the pattern was no longer being sold. Deciding she’d done all she knew to do, she prayed to God and told Him she’d done all she knew and gave it to Him, confident He would provide her a solution.

When the china arrived at her mother’s house, her mother decided to unpack it and make sure nothing was broken. When she did, do you know how many bowls were in that box? Eight! That’s right, eight.

This memory of her experience came to my mind. I’d been very amazed by it at first. But the more I’d thought about it, the more it didn’t strike me as unexpected. After all, our God is the Creator of the heavens and the earth. He made our bodies from dust. He loves us and wants to care for us. How hard is it for God to make a bowl? Did God know where my ring was? Of course He did. He knew exactly where it was. Was God capable of taking my ring from wherever it was and putting it in a new place? Easily.

So, I prayed. I said, “God, thank You for bringing my ring back to me. I want You to take that ring from wherever it is and put it on the hump on the floor in my car.” I drove a 1981 AMC Eagle station wagon. Like other rear-wheel drive cars back then, there was a big hump on the floor between the floorboards of the two front seats. This is where I told God I’d like Him to put my ring. I picked that location for two reasons: first, because it was a very prominent and easy-to-see place, and second, because I knew it was impossible that I could have overlooked the ring if it had been there before, and that if I found the ring there, no one and nothing would ever talk me out of knowing that God had answered my prayer and that a miracle had occurred.

After praying, I went out to my car again—the car I’d searched with a fine-tooth comb just a few minutes before. When I opened the door, my eyes went right to the hump near the front seats, and there was my gold and sapphire class ring, just sitting there on the carpet! I was electrified!

I often think about Romans 12:2: “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” That day I had proved to myself what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God, and nothing could ever talk me out of what happened that day. I was not only convinced that God knows where every single thing in the world is, but I was also fully persuaded that if one of those things was important to me and I lost it, God would make sure I got it back. This experience set a theme that repeated many times in my life.

A number of years later, my wife and I were expecting our fourth daughter. While my wife was on an errand, I started to put the crib together. My helper was our youngest daughter, who was five at the time, though today she is an Advanced Class graduate. The crib had two steel rods that ran up and down, holding the side on. Without these two rods, it was impossible to put the crib together at all. As I worked, I realized I couldn’t find either of those rods. I called my wife and asked if she knew where they were. She did not.

So, I was praying and searching, with my five-year-old following me as I did. At one point she said, “Think about where you saw it last.” I chuckled to myself at that. It’s what I taught her, what I said to her any time she lost something. It was the first thing I always did when searching for something. I’d actually already done that but had discounted it because it provided no help. So I continued to search, circling back to places I’d already looked at least once before. Now my daughter said, “If you believe, you will find it. If you don’t, you won’t.”

That made me stop. She was exactly right. Believing is action. What action could I take that I’d not already done? I thought of her first admonition. I could clearly picture where these rods were the last time I remembered seeing them. But the reason I’d discounted this information originally is that we’d moved about a year earlier, and the place I could picture them was in the basement of our old house, just through the door to the unfinished portion of the basement, sitting on a two-by-four that formed part of the wall, and leaning against a wall stud.

But this was the last place I remembered seeing it. Some might have thought it far-fetched, but I took my daughter and buckled her in her car seat, and we went for a drive over to our old house. I knocked on the door and proceeded to explain the strange reason for us being there and asked the young man if he minded if I checked the basement for the lost item. He invited us in. We went down the stairs, and as he was searching in the dark for the light switch, I could see the door to the unfinished portion of the basement. I just opened the door and reached into the dark beyond and wrapped my fingers around those two metal rods sitting exactly where I remembered them sitting. My daughter and I drove home talking about how great God was!

God physically moved something lost and gave it back to me. God also worked in the household, even in a small child, to bring me to lost things. And this last example is when God communicated by revelation to show me where a lost thing was.

A friend had been visiting, and he told me he’d lost his keys. He thought they were in our family room. I went and searched quickly but didn’t see them in any obvious place. Then I prayed. Before I even finished my prayer, I heard a faint electronic beep. I opened my eyes and turned in the direction of the sound. I heard it again. My eyes went to a pair of boots. I walked over to the boots and stuck my hand down into one of them and grabbed the keys. I pulled them out and immediately noticed that there was nothing on that key ring that was electronic, nothing capable of making any kind of sound.

I just smiled to myself, realizing that God had produced a sound for me that I associated with a car to show me where the keys were. How amazing is our God? God’s faithfulness to me over the years in this small category has greatly built my believing in all sorts of other areas. If God is willing to care for me in such a simple area, what else would He do for me? This is a question I’ve often asked myself over the years. Seeing that question answered over and over again has been a great personal joy and a big part of my growing personal relationship with my loving heavenly Father.

God’s Power Prevails over a Hailstorm

Springtime in my city brings all forms of precipitation. One spring day, a hailstorm was in the forecast. My husband and I lived in a house without a garage. We usually parked our car in front of the house. This day was no exception.

As the storm approached there was nothing we could do but trust God to protect our car from hail damage. We prayed and thanked God to protect our vehicle. Shortly thereafter, the storm arrived. As we watched the hailstones rain down on our car, we continued to speak in tongues and believe that our car would not be scratched, dented, or broken in any way. Finally the storm stopped. We went outside, expecting the best outcome. Our car was in the same condition it was in before the hailstorm: there was no damage to it whatsoever.

That evening on the news, reporters were showing extensive car damage at local car dealerships, damage which was being called “an act of God.” One of our neighbors had just bought a new car, which was also severely damaged in the storm. However, our Almighty God, the one true God, protected our car from this hailstorm. Matthew 18:19 was realized in our lives that day. We were able to take God at His Word, believe, and see this miracle take place before our very eyes.

Thankful for God’s Protection

Early one Sunday morning, I was taking a walk in a local park in my area before fellowship. I was enjoying some nice quiet time with the Father, speaking in tongues as I walked along enjoying the scenery. When it was getting time for me to leave, I started heading back to where I was parked and noticed a woman who was walking towards me on the trail. All of a sudden, she made a quick 180-degree turn. I thought that was rather odd. She then turned around and looked right at me with wide eyes. I stopped to ask her what was wrong, and she pointed at me and just said, “SNAKE!” I started scanning the ground in front of me thinking, “I don’t see anything,” until I finally looked straight down to discover there was a rather large snake right at my feet. If I had taken one more step, I would have stepped right on it! I carefully maneuvered away from the snake, took a picture as evidence, thanked the woman, and quickly headed to my fellowship coordinator’s house, excited to share my story. I was excited because I knew my fellowship coordinator had some expertise in identifying things in nature, and I had just finished reading chapter 5 of Joy and Peace in Believing, entitled “Claiming God’s Protection: Trusting in the Lord,” which I had been preparing to teach on in an upcoming fellowship. Now I had a great incident for my teaching!

I got to fellowship and showed the picture to my fellowship coordinator. He informed me that it was a copperhead that I had almost stepped on—a very poisonous and sometimes deadly snake. Needless to say, I was very thankful it didn’t bite me, but I was even more thankful for the Word I had just recently learned about God’s protection. I was thrilled to see that as I believed and applied the Word I had been taught, the results were clear. Because of that, I could give God the glory and share my story of deliverance with others.

As a young, ambitious college music student, I made the decision to audition and apply for the Brevard music festival in North Carolina—a prestigious and intensive seven-week orchestral program. I knew that this festival would help me grow immensely, taking me to a higher level of musicianship and artistry. I was doing everything I knew to be accepted into the program, such as practicing my instrument a lot, asking my instructors for letters of recommendation, and listening to my viola teacher’s musical suggestions. Additionally, I was aware that the festival was going to be a big financial commitment, and I found it challenging to figure out how I was going to raise enough money for not only the festival, but also for room and board, travel, and so forth.

One night, my mom and I were discussing the situation, and she had the wonderful idea for me to write letters to my college professors, teachers from my past, businesses in the area, and anyone who had greatly influenced my musical studies over the years. So I wrote letters from the heart, explaining my passion for music and my desire to bless others with it, as well as how God had helped me achieve many victories over the years and how much I was believing to attend the Brevard music festival. After I addressed all of my letters and sent them out, I was peaceful because I knew that I had put forth my best efforts to raise the funds, and now the situation was out of my hands. I trusted that God would take care of everything.

A few days later, letters started arriving, and more and more came flooding in each day. People were sending very generous donations and cards, telling me how blessed they were to receive my letters and how they were praying and believing with me to reach my goal. Many who had heard me play music in the past were even telling me how much my music had inspired them and how they wanted to give back for all of the ways I inspired others. This was so touching to me because not only were my prayers to God answered, but also He was showing me a labor of love. I never truly knew how much my music meant to people. By everyone’s kind words and gestures, it was evident how much this impacted them and how much they cared about me. I not only reached my goal, but also I was accepted into the music festival with additional scholarships.

God gave me the desire of my heart this summer, and in the process, He reminded me of the true meaning of Luke 6:38: “Give, and it shall be given unto you….” I had given of my time and talents for years, and God was simply returning the favor. The great love of the household and support of those who believe in me never ceases to amaze me, and I am so thankful to be a part of their lives.

There is not room enough on this page to tell of what God has done for me. I am so happy I learned the Word of God in The Way Ministry.

In short, I have become confident in who I am. Who am I? I am a son of God with holy spirit inside. Before I learned the Word of God, I couldn’t be sure of anything. Today, I can boldly talk to and teach a group of peers in the ministry and on the job. When I learn a truth from God’s Word, I can be sure it is true. That builds the confidence inside of me.

Not too long ago I desired to change jobs and pursue a line of work I hadn’t done before. Some people said, “You can’t get a job like that—you don’t have any experience.” Before I learned about the power of positive believing on the promises of God, I may have believed them.

Psalms 37:5:
Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.

I applied for the desired job and got hired. I am meek and confident in what I do. The Word of God I have learned in The Way Ministry has given me a foundation to base my beliefs on that doesn’t fail. At any time I can go to God and find help.

Hebrews 4:16:
Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

I thank my God and The Way International for the Word of God I have been taught.

I worked in the automotive industry before going Way Disciple. The company I worked for supplied automotive seats to automobile companies. I worked in the main test lab, testing automotive seats to federal standards.

After deciding to go out as a Way Disciple and being accepted, I informed my immediate supervisor of what I was planning to do. He suggested that I ask for a six-month leave of absence because I really wanted to come back and work for the same company. I met with the human resources director and explained what I would be doing during the six-month leave of absence. I filled out the necessary paperwork and waited about a week for an answer. I was denied a leave of absence.

I was a little disappointed, but I knew that if God wanted me to work for this company again then He would open some doors for me. I was not going to let this stop me from going out Way Disciple because I had made a commitment to God and His Word. At that time, I kept a couple of verses in front of me:

Ecclesiastes 5:4:
When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.

Proverbs 3:5,6:
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Two weeks before I was leaving my job, the test lab supervisor called me into his office and offered me a promotion if I would stay. I thanked him for the offer and politely declined.

One week before I was leaving my job, the head of another department that did specialized testing heard what I was doing. I had done some work for this person when she was over a seat program, and she liked the work that I had done for her. She came and talked to me. She said that her department had an opening, but she could not hire anybody until the end of April or beginning of May the following year. I accepted her offer.

After a successful Way Disciple tenure, I went back to work for the same company and enjoyed every minute that I worked there. Overcoming this challenge in my life strengthened my trust in God and His Word.