Praise of Provision!

Can I just give it up to God for a second?!  He is a wonder working provider. It seems like the problems of life keep stacking up yet he keeps knocking it down. Problems can’t stand in the way of my God.  

If you can’t tell yet this is just a blog of praise.  I got to tell somebody.  We have come across so many difficult situations lately and it just gets depressing.  It makes you want to throw in the towel.  I want to wave the white flag.  But my God.  Those are some pretty powerful words right there!  But God!  He comes through!

If you follow our ministry and prayer requests you’ve noticed that we have had some medical issues come up recently.  I have what’s called complicated migraines.  These are headaches that come with auras.  Auras are symptoms that occur that are not necessarily pain to the head area.  These symptoms include numbness to the body, slurred speech, vision blindness, and other things.  It was a pretty scary time because when it happened initially I thought I was having a stroke (because of the stroke-like symptoms)  but God being gracious to me deemed that it would only be the complicated migraines.  These have no long term side effects and are relatively safe (as uncomfortable as they can be) and not debilitating or degenerating.  Praise number 1!    

Stemming from those incidents came a rack of medical bills.  This year we decided to get the base medical insurance for the sake of saving money.  God sees our plans and laughs sometimes I think.  Not that  he’s playing games or anything but just how we think we are so clever.  Well this year has been the most difficult year for us medically (with what I just spoke about and also with grace having pneumonia and with me injuring my knee (a whole other story)).  With the base medical insurance we are not covered for ER visits.  That out of pocket bill when it came was outrageous.  I didn’t know there was a physician’s bill and an ER visit bill.  These guys are taxing.  But as we prepared to make the payments Grace looked at the itemized list and we found that the hospital had charged for items we did not use.  We are still waiting to see the results from that but the initial change is already around $5,000.  Praise number 2!

Can I get a witness?!  Let me just leave you with one last praise to the Father of good gifts!  We have been on our insurance for the van for around 3 years now.  Recently our provider called and told us to make a change to Progressive.  He said this would save us money in the long run.  Initially the plan looked good.  No real coverage change, just a company change and a lower rate.  No big deal right?  When we sent over all the paperwork required, I got an email saying that my coverage would be canceled because of eligibility problems.  I called my agent (the broker who made the deal) and asked him about the situation.  He gave me assurances that everything would be fine and I shouldn’t worry.  He said Progressive just has not received or processed all the paperwork I had sent them.  As time kept going by I kept bringing the issue up to him through email and phone calls (which he didn’t answer).  Finally he got back with me and said he would set up a time to go over what the situation was.  Which he did not.  But I continued to send emails and leave voice messages.  He finally got  back with me.  It was the day my policy was canceled (because I left a voice message re-addressing the nature of the situation).  He told me there was an issue with us being a ministry in the van so they would not cover us.  Then he proceeded to tell me that we no longer have insurance coverage and he cannot help me get any.  Basically he said we were just out of luck. 

It was a difficult task to get insurance in the first place because we are a self converted van. It took us so long to find that company.  And after 3 years of service, it was like they didn’t care anything about us (I have to say it was a new guy and that we had never met who switched all that stuff up on us and never got back with us).  But God.  I tell you what! I made two phone calls.  One to a person he recommended (who said we tried them a couple of years ago and couldn’t help and still couldn’t) and then I called a company local to where we have our mailbox.  That company gave us insurance that very day.  To me it just seems impossible!  I tried so hard and called so many places when we first needed RV coverage for the van.  This time it was as simple as two phone calls!  How good is our God family??!! Praise number 3!

Our God is a protector and a provider.  He sees our need and meets it.  How can I ever doubt him when I see it so visibly in my life?  Each day to see his provision just reminds me of how much more I should trust in him and in his plan to take care of Grace and I as we serve him where he has called us.

I want to encourage you to trust in him for he is infinitely faithful and worthy of trust! Praise the Lord!

“Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Yahweh, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Psalm 9:10

“Seek First his Kingdom and his righteousness and all these things[daily provisions] will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33