Finances 101

One thing I’ve learned about finances over the past thirty years of foreign missionary service is that God will always pay for what He’s ordered; but seldom will pay for what He hasn’t. I’ve even experienced the

challenge of holding on to God’s money until He lets us know why He’s dumped it into our laps. If God doesn’t say it’s a gift to be spent at our own discretion, He’s got a particular purpose in mind. Here’s one example:

In October of 2006, I received the Student of the Year Award from the Hadley School for the Blind. I had no idea that in attending that elegant ceremony, the Lord had positioned me in just the right place, at just the right time, to receive the miraculous provision Father God had made for a program He’d yet to ask our mission to provide.

I’d served in West Africa for seventeen years at that point. Normally, an organization develops an idea for a new program, and then seeks funding. To have a large donation designated only as “to help kids in Africa,” proved a new experience, indeed.

God revealed His plan soon after, and the Samaritan House Children’s Center opened its doors on May 31, 2007. Those same four dozen-plus kids are still going to school with tuition, uniforms, and school supplies provided through our program. They sit down to a hot meal at the close of their school day. If they need medical care, our program sees that they get it. All because I shared at a church in California the Sunday following the awards ceremony near Chicago.

God had a plan. God stirred the heart of a generous American man to care about the unmet needs of African kids. The man responded to the stirring, and “the rest is history,” as they say.

In Exodus I read the same Biblical precedent God set for financing special projects. When the Israelites who had been enslaved by the Egyptians left Egypt, their carts and sacks bore the burden of a great load of costly goods of various kinds. Why in the world would millions of people walking to the Promised Land need all those treasures? Dehydrated leeks, lamb jerky, maybe; but gold and onyx?

Again, God had a plan. The donations were His provision for that plan. The people might have felt like they deserved the riches for all they had endured in those last four hundred years of slavery. Nevertheless, when the time came, God stirred the hearts to give for the project.

Everyone had something—God had seen to that—but only those with the right and willing attitude had been called upon to give.

Exodus 25:2(NIV) “Tell the Israelites to bring me an offering. You are to receive the offering for me from each man whose heart prompts him to give.”

What a lot of Divine prompting and willing responding took place there in that desert wilderness!

Verses 21-29: “Everyone who was willing and whose heart moved them came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the tent of meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments.

All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments. They all presented their gold as a wave offering to the Lord. Everyone who had blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen, or goat hair, ram skins dyed red or the other durable leather brought them.

Those presenting an offering of silver or bronze brought it as an offering to the Lord, and everyone who had acacia wood for any part of the work brought it.

Every skilled woman spun with her hands and brought what she had spun—blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen. And all the women who were willing and had the skill spun the goat hair.

The leaders brought onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breastpiece. They also brought spices and olive oil for the light and for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense.

All the Israelite men and women who were willing brought to the Lord freewill offerings for all the work the Lord through Moses had commanded them to do.”

Okay, but it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of the moment. What happened after that first call for offerings?

Exodus 36:3 “And the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning.”

In fact, their generosity became a problem for the workers trying to build the facility.

Verses 4-7: “All the skilled workers who were doing all the work on the sanctuary left what they were doing and said to Moses, ‘The people are bringing more than enough for doing the work the Lord commanded to be done.’

Then Moses gave an order and they sent this word throughout the camp: ‘No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.’

And so the people were restrained from bringing more, because what they already had was more than enough to do all the work.”

It’s such an encouragement when I can see God’s Word and principles played out in my own life. Truly, He’s the same yesterday, today and forever! (Heb.13:8)

Such experiences are not reserved for missionaries on the foreign field. God is everywhere! Do you have a story of your own to share? I’d be honored to read it in the comments, or by email (dannie_hawley@sisna.com ), if you’d prefer.