Jehovah-Jireh

 JEHOVAH-JIREH = The Lord will Provide.

This week, I had a front row seat to see Jehovah-Jireh (The Lord will Provide) at work in my life. We first see this beautiful name of God in Genesis 22. Abraham is on his way to offer his child, Isaac, in sacrifice to God. God has asked the unthinkable of Abraham – to forfeit the life of his boy in obedience to the Lord. As Abraham is about to sacrifice his son, God steps in providing a ram to sacrifice in Isaac’s place. For this, Abraham names the place “The Lord will Provide” – Jehovah-Jireh.

Actually, I’m probably more aware than most of how much the Lord provides on a regular basis in my life. I once read that if you live above the poverty level, you are in the top 5% of the richest people in the world. Have a car, a TV, or a computer? Welcome to the top 1% of the richest people in the world. I have a roof over my head, a car in the parking lot, a job to sustain me, clothes in my closet, more stuff lying around my apartment than most of the world’s people could ever imagine owning: a computer, a cell phone, a library full of books which I can read myself. I’ve got clean water and indoor plumbing, a kitchen full of food, and inoculations and medications to keep me healthy with access to many, many doctors. Looking at this list, I am embarrassingly wealthy.

But this week, over and above all these riches, I saw the Lord provide even more. There was a day this past week when I desperately needed to be held up in prayer and God provided two dear friends who prayed with me throughout the day. And then later I got together with a few women who are new to many aspects of their faith and God used me to reach out to them in a very powerful way. Yesterday I was on my way to serve at a lunch when I received a call about a family emergency. I didn’t know what to do as I had this commitment but was needed elsewhere. When I got to the kitchen, God had already provided an extra, unexpected volunteer so I was able to attend to my family. Also this week, I felt led by God to buy and gift five bibles and was unsure how I was going to pay for them. I’m blessed, but I’m also on a tight budget. To buy the bibles God wanted me to give was going to cost at least $75 - money I didn’t have in my budget or my bank account. When I went to the store to purchase them, I found that these particular bibles were part of a very special sale - $5 each. Because I stepped out in faith relying on God to provide, five women will have God’s Word in their hands this week. As a friend of mine says, “Yeah God!”

These examples were just a few of the abundant blessings God has poured out on me this week alone. A wise woman once challenged me, “If today you had only what you thanked the Lord for yesterday, what would you have?” It gave me pause to reflect on all the Lord provides and how so often I miss the blessing because I’m too busy worrying about what I don’t have. Every morning I wake up and I can thank God for an endless list of blessings I’ve received even before my foot hits the floor starting with “Thank you Lord for another day!” I hope that my sharing what God is doing in my life helps you see a little more clearly the abundant blessings in your own life.

About the pictures:
Deer Lake Park, PA (November 2009 and 2010)