One morning I was praying. I asked the Lord, “Lord, what is on your heart today?” This kind of daily seeking of His will was something I wanted to grow in, and it was becoming more regular. On this one morning I asked the question and immediately this idea swept across my mind: give away all of your personal food and trust God to provide every need in the next eight days. And don’t ask anyone for food. I was preparing to go to Central Asia for a month and thought, that works well; I’ll not have to worry about leaving food in the fridge! But at the same time, this thought really scared me. Was I really going to trust God in such a way? I wrestled with the doubt and reasoned that it was just this crazy idea that God didn’t actually prompt.
However, when He speaks, we cannot hide from His word. I had been reading in the Proverbs that week and opened up to Chapter 10. What did I read?
Proverbs 10:3 : “The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.”
I knew in that moment that God truly was leading me to live in a scary level of faith. Would I trust in His character?
I decided (thankfully) to obey God and I gave away all my food to the food bank.
The first night, as I was wondering how God would provide, a friend called me and invited me out to dinner. Alright, that’s the first one, I thought. I enjoyed good food and better company, but come morning I was again faced with the pressing question: where would my meals come from today? I missed breakfast, went to work. And as my lunch break approached without food in sight, I was tested again: was God really going to provide for me? Would I stay firm or cave in and provide for myself?
As I those thoughts crossed my mind, I got a text message: Hey brother, would you like to join us for Indonesian food tonight? I laughed out loud, thankful for and surprised by the promise of provision for that night, though I still would end up spending the day without a meal until that night. Oddly enough, during the drive to their house, I got a phone call from a coworker inviting me to dinner with him and his wife. For a moment I was afraid: Did I go the wrong way? Did God want me to wait? In that moment I felt Him speak to my heart: No son, I give you more than you need.
The Indonesian food was delicious and I thoroughly enjoyed the company of my friends, but come morning I was again faced with hunger. Again, I had no breakfast and while working I became weary and frustrated, easily forgetting how God had provided for me abundantly the night before. It was in these moments that I started to realize this whole thing wasn’t actually about food. God was stretching me to trust Him and hunger for Him rather than any perishable thing. And when I began to engage with Him, I realized how amazing it was that He was allowing me to fast and pray before heading overseas – something I never planned for, but was so necessary!
The rest of that eight day period was a glorious time. By the end of it, through various acts of faith and generosity, I had more food on my counter and in my fridge than I had at the beginning of the week. In that period, one coworker asked me if I was fasting, due to consistently not eating lunch. Conflicted, I shared that I was only allowing God to provide my meals. In response, Tim and his wife gave me a whole bunch of food from their pantry. In this I felt challenged: did I go outside the bounds of the exercise of faith?
In retrospect, I realized that this week really wasn’t about food. It was actually about me realizing, 1) that God truly is faithful and, 2) that He cares about people as a top priority. All of the food provided for me came through relationships I normally would not have engaged to such a degree. It was so worth it to “inconvenience” my time to connect with these people God loves, and in the process have all of my needs provided. How good is our God! I learned that those who seek first the kingdom of God and all that He is will have all of their needs met along the way. Our Father truly knows what we need before we even ask!
Jesus, I pray that Your people would be responsive to Your leading so that they may know the fullness of who You are. I pray that we lean not on our own understanding, but that we trust in You alone. And thank You that as we do, we will find You to be true to Your word and make all of our paths straight.
If this testimony touched your heart, I encourage you to spend some time in Proverbs 3 and Matthew 6 and let God speak to you. He really is good, and you can find Him for yourself to be all that He says He is. Be blessed friends.
Photo by Freddie Collins on Unsplash
