In the Bible, the number five is often associated with God’s grace and favor and blessing. Fifty-five is the number of the double portion. This month, Carolyn and I are celebrating our 55th wedding anniversary, and 55 years of ministry together. Truly we have seen God do so many amazing things through the years.
God’s favor and blessing is not just for a select few. It is available to everyone who reaches out to Him in faith. In His Word God promises those who are thirsty that they can find their longing satisfied in Him. His grace rests on those who humbly seek His favor.
God’s Plan for You
God has a plan for your life, and it is far more than you can even imagine. His thoughts are beyond ours, and provide much more than we could ask. Looking back now I see how God worked to bring the great global prayer movement of the Jerusalem Prayer Team to life. God knows your name. He knows who you are. He knows where you are. And He knows what you need.
Our Father shows unconditional love. “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.” (Psalm 103:8–10)
He is integrity personified. “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” (Numbers 23:19)
He is compassionate. “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.” (Psalm 103:8)
God has tremendous wisdom. “For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” (1 Corinthians 1:25)
Seed for the Sower
God is more than able to meet every need that we have. When we trust in Him, He provides for us. It is a wonderful cycle. When we obey His instruction to give generously, He gives to us so that we can give even more. He blesses the generous with His bounty—our gifts turn His head and move His arm to action in our lives.
Through the years I have seen God richly bless those who have given generously to His work. When we give we are not meeting a need God has. Everything already belongs to Him. When we give we are expressing our faith. When we cling to everything we have, it really says that we do not trust God to meet our needs. A hoarding heart robs the owner of the opportunity to see God’s power displayed. It is only when we open our wallets and our hearts…both are vital…that we put ourselves in position to see God do things that are impossible to explain apart from His power.
When Carolyn and I started out in our ministry, we had almost nothing. But we believed in what God wanted us to do. We were working with Jewish young people who were struggling with addiction and other issues. Many of them came from New York, and God began to burden my heart to work with them there rather than waiting for them to come to Texas. I went home one day and told Carolyn, “God has told me to buy a training center in New York City to assist Jewish kids coming off of drugs. I believe it will cost a million dollars, and I don’t know where we will get the money.”
Our total income the year before was $4,500. When I said I had no idea where the money would come from, I meant it. I didn’t have any resources. We were barely surviving. But we were happy in serving the Lord!
Our oldest daughter Michelle was five years old. She heard this conversation and she said, “Daddy, I’ve got a million dollars in my piggy bank.” She went to her room and came back with her little bank. “I will give you the money. It’s here in my piggy bank!” I had tears in my eyes as we broke that bank open and counted out what was inside. It was $3.26.
Faith rose up in my heart. I took that money to the bank and opened an account to buy the training center. The teller asked me if I were crazy. He thought I had mental problems. I told him what God was going to do, and he laughed. He assured me the money would not be coming in. “You can’t pray money in Reverend. You need to see a counselor!”
Every day I went to our center in Texas and prayed and fasted for a miracle. Sixteen weeks later, we deposited the final funds in the bank to reach the total of one million dollars so we could buy the building we needed. The banker apologized to me, but I knew the real secret. Michelle’s holy offering—her childish act of faith and Radical Generosity—had touched the heart of God and moved His hand to action.
