Overwhelmed With Joy!
We may or may not be too familiar with Joel 2:26: “And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you.” These are sure words! Nevertheless, many of us have had moments in our lives when we struggle with finances. We wonder how we are going to make ends meet. I have learned that often God allows these situations to overwhelm us with His Joy!
One Sunday afternoon, as I sat at my desk staring at the balance in my bank account, I knew I needed a miracle. I had returned my tithe and offerings online and paid my bills. That left three dollars in my account to purchase lunch for the week.
I often spend my quiet time conversing with God as I would with a friend, and just like a friend, He responds. When I saw my budget shortfall, I began to converse with the Lord. I was reminded of John 16:24, “. . . ask, and ye shall receive, that your JOY may be full.” I said a short prayer claiming this promise, and I asked Him to come through for me. When I finished, I went away joyful, confident that God would honor His Word.
After the prayer, I was moved to grab a box of Minute® Rice from the kitchen cabinet and put it in my car for lunch the next day. Even though I didn’t know what I would eat with it, I knew I needed to take the box of rice to work. I placed one box in my lunch bag, grabbed my keys, and put the bag in my car. Then I went about my usual routine, forgetting the incident.
That evening, my husband came home with a plate of food for me to take to work the next day for lunch. But this was just the beginning of my joy that week. The next day at work, a co-worker asked me if I had any rice or could buy rice from the Chinese restaurant across the street. She had been thinking about me the night before and brought me some stew to eat with rice. I burst into laughter and explained how the Lord had impressed my heart to take the rice to work. I couldn’t help but be amazed at how the Lord had provided lunch for me two days in a row. But that wasn’t the end.
God is never early and never late. He is always just on time. On Wednesday, another co-worker asked me to accompany her to our then office cafeteria and bought lunch for both of us. On Thursday, another co-worker bought me enough lunch for two days. Since we don’t work on Fridays, I placed the leftovers in the freezer for Monday. That would have been enough, but it wasn’t all.
Thursday evening, when I checked my mail, I found a refund check for an overpayment of a bill. I’m very meticulous and pay keen attention to such details. It would be rare for me to overpay a bill, but I did. The refund check was enough to cover my needs for the following week. Joy overflowed my heart, and I began to thank the Lord for being so awesome! All my life, the Lord has been faithful. All my life, He has brought me joy. David said in Psalm 37:25: “I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread.”
Like Paul, I say, “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13)
Johnetta B. Flomo
Associate Editor
