Divine Appointments

Sunday morning I was awakened by a nagging feeling of anxiety. Thoughts of fear raced through my head as I could not keep my mind off of our finances. Although knowing that God has continued to provide us with everything that we have needed to make this trip, I still could not help but think about the fact that we only had about two weeks worth of money to cover our expenses. I was not frantic, but I was anxious.


I went to church with the same thoughts hoping and praying that something would calm my spirit. I'll admit it was a morning of discouragement and weakness. I am aware that God has been faithful to us and I also know that my faith is strong, but even I have days where I need encouragement.


My plan was to walk the cross after church and do so the rest of the day. As I set out on foot with the cross I was in constant prayer. I had that same uneasy feeling in my gut and I could not shake it. I walked for what seemed like miles with no encouragement. It seemed as though everyone that looked at me was either disgusted with me or apathetic. Rarely did I get a thumbs up or even a wave accompanied by a honk.


About an hour into the walk I called Rachel and asked her to meet me to pick me up so that I could go home. I just wanted to pray and read my Bible. A few minutes later I called her back and told her to cancel my request; even though I did not feel like it, I knew God wanted me out there. So I continued to walk. I physically stopped and bowed my head to pray about three times after I had called her back. I was asking God for direction and encouragement. I knew that someone was supposed to see me carrying the cross; therefore, I was not going to give up because of my own fears.


Then it happened. A family drove past me and as they did the man driving saw me with surprise in his eyes and pointed both hands at me. He turned his SUV around and got out and approached me. We began to talk and I shared my story with him. I found out he was from Oklahoma and was there on vacation. I told him that I thought that was a long way to travel for a vacation at the beach. He said it took them three days to get there and that they were just going wherever the Lord led them. He then handed me a $100 bill and said that God told him to give that to me.


I immediately began to cry. I knew at that moment that God had sent this man to encourage me. The man paraphrased a Bible verse when he said, "Care not for tomorrow, only about the things of today." He was talking about Matthew 6:34. The verse speaks of taking care of things for today, because tomorrow will have it's own worries. He then prayed for me and left.

There I was. A man of faith carrying a large, wooden cross through busy city streets. A man on the road to give other people encouragement and build other people's faith in God, but it turns out I was the one to be encouraged that day. I was the one that needed the overpowering presence of God. Suddenly, the day's events changed course and many things happened that were glorifying to God. To top it all off, a young girl also stopped me near the end of my walk. She handed me $20. Can you guess what her name was? Her name was Faith. Isn't God good to those that obey Him? He didn't have to bring Faith into my path at the end of the day, but He did, just because He wanted to overflow my cup.

Thank all of you for keeping up with us. I have some big news coming up soon so please stay logged on with us. We will continue to carry the cross here and then carry it wherever He leads us to next.

Spread the WORD!!

Barry