Skip to main content

Furnaces, COVID-19 and Daily Bread


Through some missionaries, we’ve become aware of some people in dire need during these difficult days of COVID-19. 

Geographically, they range from some families in Kenya, to some Venezuelan refugees in Peru to a Bolivian community in Argentina.  They each have some unique challenges but the common thread is that they need food for each day.

As one who lives in the United States and as one who has experienced economic security all my life, the basic need for food for each day is far from my experience.  While I might feel the need to pray for ongoing employment, health insurance and a stable retirement account, I must admit that I have more than enough food for today. 

In Luke 11, the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray.  The phrase “give us each day our daily bread” (Luke 11:3) is very familiar but I must admit that it has not really encompassed a sense of urgency, at least for me personally.  But the folks described above feel that urgency.  And there are many others who do also.

Little did I know, as I was writing this, that our furnace would quit working.  Our prayers could have switched from “give us this day our daily bread” to “give us this day the funds to replace our furnace!”

But I should mention that when news of the stimulus money first became public, we wondered what need we would have in the future that the funds would be used for.  We probably now know!  And while we haven’t received the funds yet and we are now in the process of getting quotes for replacing the furnace, we are grateful that God knew our need long before it became apparent to us.  So we give thanks and we prayerfully wait to see how He will meet our needs in this situation. 

But we are still burdened for those who need enough food for today.  So we pray for them that the Lord would give them their daily bread.  And we plan to continue in our giving.

Will you join in prayer?  Will you join in giving?  If you need some ideas on ways to get funds directly to those in need, as mentioned above, email me at:  seeman.scme@gmail.com


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Can't Get No Satisfaction

One of the songs that were popular in my youth was not particularly upbeat or helpful but it probably did express some of the angst of my generation.  It was not one that particularly resonated with me but as I recently read the book of Haggai, it did come to mind, well, at least some of the lyrics did.  It was the Rolling Stones song with the lyrics “I can’t get no satisfaction”.  Take a look at the chorus of that bleak song:   I can't get no satisfaction; I can't get no satisfaction; Gonna try and I try and I try and I try; I can't get no - I can't get no –   Now take a look at Haggai 1:6 – “ You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” It sure sounds like the people of Judah couldn’t get any satisfaction with the things of life that normally should have brought some type of s...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Horse Of Course

In Biblical times, horses represented military power and strength.  And if you had both horses and chariots, well, that was the ultimate of military powers and wars were often won with them. Yet in seeking to have what would normally be considered insurmountable military strength, there was one factor that was often overlooked.  The Psalmist made it clear what that factor was when he wrote:  “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.”   (Ps 20:7) While Israel did at times trust in the name of the Lord, there were other times when they tried to trust in horses and chariots to win their battles.  This is what the Lord spoke to Israel through the prophet Isaiah:  “Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help,   who rely on horses, who trust in the multitude of their chariots   and in the great strength of their horsemen, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel, or seek help from the Lord .”  ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Stouthearted!

Steve the Stouthearted; it has a nice medieval ring to it, maybe even middle earth overtones.  I noticed that word “stouthearted” recently in Psalm 138, verse 3:   “When I called, you answered me; you made me bold and stouthearted.”   (NIV, 1973) The word stouthearted is used in the Bible to describe individuals who exhibit courage, determination, and resilience, often in the face of adversity or opposition. This characteristic is seen as a virtue, reflecting steadfastness in faith and purpose. The stouthearted are those who remain firm in their convictions and are not easily swayed by fear or doubt (from The Bible Hub website). And yet to be bold and stouthearted for most is not something that just comes naturally, we need the Lord to make us bold and stouthearted.   And, from the verse above, it appears that he does so in response to us calling on him.   So it probably wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to say that those who have been made bold and stouth...
Post a Comment
Read more