The Stable-A Story of God's Provision

This morning, Monica shared a heart-warming account of how God recently provided for her wants in the form of a child-sized Pottery Barn chair.

She asked for her readers to share stories of how God has provided for them. I was reminded of my stable story which I had not shared on my blog yet. But what a great time of year to share this with my readers!

This was my comment on her post:

"God has provided so many times it's hard to keep track, which is why I like to chronicle these things on my blog-so we don't forget what God has done for us!

One story that I haven't shared yet on my blog happened last winter. This was not a need but a want.

I have a nice nativity set that I purchased years ago at the Pottery in Commerce, GA for $1.50. I've used this for a long time. In recent years, I decided that I really wanted a stable to go with it as the $1.50 set only included the figures. Last fall(2007), I saved some money to purchase a stable. I started looking around in October. Hobby Lobby had one but I really didn't like it-some parts were flimsy. Michael's right out and told me they didn't"carry that sort of thing." Well, honestly,after a bit, I kind of forgot that I was looking for a stable and had come to terms with my holy family being homeless another year.

The day that I was going to set up my nativity, we stopped at a yard sale(in December, mind you!) on a whim. As soon as I got out of the car, I spotted a table of the usual tacky Christmas decorations but something wooden and rustic was sitting in the middle. My husband says that he's never seen anyone move more quickly than I at the prospect of a bargain and I practically flew over there!

Sure enough, it was a stable and exactly the style that I was looking for. They had $2 on it, which it was definitely worth, but after counting my nickles and dimes, I found that I only had $1.50. I asked if they would take $1.50 instead and after a bit of hesitation, they were glad to.

We got in the car and drove home, me holding my precious stable. My husband asked as he always does after we've seen God provide, "You prayed, didn't you?" Which I had, but only at the beginning of my search as I asked God to direct me to the right place to find what I was looking for and then I forgot all about it.

God did not forget, however. As I put up my nativity set this year, I was reminded of how I came to have the stable, and how if God desired to gift me with a house for a set of ceramic people, how much more He desires to care for us as His children!"

We have seen God provide in tangible ways in the past few years. This has grown my faith and trust in God tremendously. God is not my personal Santa giving in to my every want and whim, but He does desire to provide "good things for His children." Luke 11:13

As I include God in my daily activities and ask for His guidance in all areas of life, I am much more aware of how He provides. It's noticeable when God provides in a tight spot but how about when He provides for me to have a decent sized grocery budget which allows us to buy really good food and more than we need, a roof over our heads when it's raining,central heat and air when it is very cold or hot? The things I take for granted and see every day are the very things that I should be thanking God for.

For a few more accounts of practical ways God has provided for our family, you can read all about the $5 chair, the futon and even my husband's need for a belt!

Psalm 37:4: "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart!"

Futon Blessings

Remember this futon? We didn't end up getting it after all. We would've had to drive several hours to pick it up plus it needed some repairs. We weren't sure it would be worth the gas money. So we kept thinking about buying a futon to double as a couch and spare bed for guests.

We were planning to buy a futon this past Saturday. We'd found a really nice one and had the money in hand to purchase it. Saturday morning, Andy left early to take the car in for maintenance. As soon as he left, the phone rang. It was a friend from our church. "I have the futon loaded up", he said, and I'll be at your house in 20 minutes." What?!? I remember talking about buying a futon and he mentioned that he had an extra. But then we never heard anything back from him about it.

So our friend brought us a futon! We did end up purchasing a new thicker mattress for it to make it more comfortable, but it was nice not to have to purchase the whole thing. It looks quite nice and has doubled the seating area in our living room.

Andy's parents are coming this weekend so we got this just in time!

What a blessing!

The $5 Chair

Ever since our couch broke last year, we've had our eyes open for replacement furniture. We still had a love seat and a rocker so we weren't sitting on the floor or anything. And we could bring in the dining room chairs for guests.

But I still thought it would be nice if we had some more comfy seating in the living room. And I prayed that God would provide furniture for us either by us saving up the money to buy something new or used or by giving us something that needed a new home.

We went to a yard sale a couple of weeks ago and found a nice armchair for $5! And they even delivered it for us. Wow! It's not that extra beautiful but cute in a 1950's way and in great shape. An afghan draped over it helps its looks tremendously.

That same week a friend offered us his futon. In our quest for furniture, we had decided that if we were to buy something, we would like to have a futon to serve double duty as a couch and a guest bed as we don't have a guest room.

This friend had stopped in on his way through town and as he was leaving, I remarked that perhaps next time he came we would have a futon so he could spend the night. He stopped and asked, "Are you looking for a futon? I have one that I am planning to get rid of. I'd love for you to have it."

What an answer to prayer! I am praising God for these reminders that He cares and wants to provide for us! He is our Source.

Has God answered a prayer in a special way recently? Please share how He has provided for your family!

Little Blessings

This afternoon, my husband and I went to look for a new belt for him. The one he is currently wearing is ripping and will not be usable much longer. He wears a hard-to-find size so after much searching at all the "cheaper" stores, our only alternative was to buy a $35 belt at Belks. We were not tickled about that price at all! Especially considering that his current belt is from Belks and has lasted only a year and a half!

Right before we left the house, I had the feeling that we should stop at Goodwill and check to see if they had anything. At first, I felt very foolish about this and thought I was just imagining. Our local Goodwill isn't known to be that great most of the time, so I don't make the trip that often.

But I couldn't shake the feeling that we should at least stop and check so we went over to Goodwill just in case. If they didn't have anything, then at least we would know that we had covered our bases.:-)

We walked in and went directly to the men's section. They had 2 (not one, but 2) belts in his size. One black and one brown. For 99 cents each!

Wow! We saved over $30 by shopping second-hand. I think my husband may finally be becoming a believer in the true savings of thrift store shopping. :-)

This is just another small example of how God cares and provides for us even in the small things. We are so thankful!

Blessings

Isn't it great that God knows our needs and takes care of them?

I've been going through my winter clothes and trying to get some semblance of a fall and winter wardobe going. It's hard to know what to wear during these months down here in South Carolina. It can be long sleeve and sweater weather one day and shorts and t-shirt the next!

But I have noticed that my winter clothing isn't in the best of shape. I only have a couple of long sleeve shirts and some look pretty bad. So I knew I would have to replace them some time soon. I asked God to help me find the right clothes at the right price, since He always knows about those things better than me. I hadn't thought any more about it until a friend brought a small bag of clothes to me at church today. Some I won't be able to wear, but at the bottom of the bag were two long sleeve shirts that will be perfect for fall and winter. The great thing is that I already have a shirt of the exact same style in different colors, so I already know that they will fit right and be modest.

As for the right price...who can argue with FREE!!

God also answers prayer and works through our own stupidity. Here's an example:

Over Labor Day weekend, Eckerds had a special going along with the Pepsi Company where you could buy 4 -12 packs of select Pepsi products for $10. The ad included a rebate form to send in to receive a rebate of $10. So I would get 4 packs of drinks for free. Not bad, huh?

Well, unfortunately, Eckerds sometimes misrepresents their sale items and gets things mixed up. Their ad pictured Aquafina water bottles as part of the deal, but the fine print on the rebate form didn't mention Aquafina as one of the qualifying products.

Well, I didn't read the fine print and purchased 3 12-packs of Aquafina and 1 Sierra Mist, since we drink very little carbonated beverages and almost nothing with caffeine.

I cut off the UPC symbols and sent the rebate form in, all the while feeling like a frugal and smart little homemaker. Then I read this post and realized that I had made a mistake by not reading the fine print. I was sickened to think I had just spent $10 that I wouldn't have spent otherwise and I felt like I had wasted some money. My husband helped me to calm down and look at the situation as a learning experience and I was thankful that it was only $10 and not $20.:-)

I also prayed about it and asked God to work it out however He thought was best. Then I put it out of my mind and only thought about it as a reminder to always read the fine print!

So imagine my surprise last week when I received a $10 rebate check from the Pepsi company! I certainly wasn't expecting anything and I was taking full responsibility for the error. I am thankful that God worked it out this way and you can be sure that I will continue to read the fine print and only submit rebates for items that I am assured are the ones that the rebate is for.

Just thought I'd share two little praise stories from my life this week! Thank you, God for your faithful provision!