How One Extravagant Gift Drew Me Closer to Jesus

By Grace Richards

Last year, I had to pray a lot. While I prayed many times for God to provide, my funds were not growing fast enough. It seemed doubtful that I would have enough to work full-time the following year, so I began to consider my alternatives.

Would I need to work part-time? How would I make up for the lack of income? The loss of health insurance? Was this part of God’s plan?

My future was a question mark. My faith was defined by the prayer “Lord I believe!…help my unbelief.”

And then I got a call from Mr. X during the week of Christmas 2020. After a few quick pleasantries, Mr. X got to the point.

“Grace, how much financial support do you need?”

I was a little hesitant to respond. I knew of Mr. X’s generosity to other missionaries. I pushed aside rising hope that my desperate prayer for provision might be answered.

While taming this hope, I fought my embarrassment at the amount of support I had failed to raise. What would Mr. X think of me?

And yet another part of me was relieved that someone would care enough to ask for the dirty details.

“I need to raise an additional $18,000 in 2021 if I want to continue working full-time.”

It seemed to take no time or effort at all for Mr. X to respond, “Ok, I can cover that for you.” Mr. X called our finance team and shared that he would fund any deficit I hold at the end of 2021. So while I continue to work hard to raise my support this year, I also have this tremendous relief knowing that even if don’t, I will still have the provision I need.

And God is able to make all grace abound to you,
so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times,
you may abound in every good work. -2 Corinthians 9:8

How are you supposed to respond when someone gives you $18,000?

Of course I had heard of such generosity before. I had heard plenty of testimonies of God’s miraculous provision.

Of course God provides. No surprise there.

And yet, I was surprised.

I believed that God was capable of miraculous provision, but my inner battle was doubting whether He would miraculously provide for ME.

Making Sense of Generosity

When I became aware that Mr. X was committing to filling my full financial need, I struggled to think clearly. I felt the need to return the favor or to earn his gift.

Were there words I could speak that would share the same amount of joy, wonder, gratitude, and confusion that he had just given me?

Wasn’t the term “Thank you” designed for situations like this? These two overused words seemed insufficient for this level of kindness, but they were all I could offer.

But Mr. X’s response reminded me that the source of this gift was not of this world.

“We want to bless others with what God has given us,” he explained.

In this experience of receiving, God helped me to see his presence in the act of giving.

When we bring this equation to the Kingdom of God, we see that awesome, stunning, and unconditional acts of kindness not only make sense, but they are the foundation of salvation. They reflect God’s amazing grace.

I John 4:19 “We love because He first loved us”

Wasn’t it Jesus who paid off our ENTIRE debt of sin?

This gift of love not only gives us freedom, but it has given us an example of how to live. When we live with the generosity taught to us by Jesus, we point others to him.

Last year, God wasn’t big enough to provide me $18,000. I had allowed lies to seep into my heart…lies that I would fail in raising my support because I’m not important enough. Spiritual enough. Hardworking enough. I’m expendable. Not worth the investment.

But God saw my insecurities and replied by revealing his stunning generosity. He chose me in my imperfections.

Next Steps

In this moment, my cup is overflowing and I am full of peace and joy. He has provided!

But the work does not end here. The application remains:

First, to THANK the Lord for his provision.

Second, to REMEMBER his provision, trusting he will continue to provide.

Third, to become an instrument of his provision for others, asking him to help me be as generous to others as he has been to me.

What gives you confidence in God’s provision?

Do you believe that God is willing to provide for YOU? Or are you caught in the net of doubt about your worth?

How is God calling you to show stunning generosity to someone in your life?

Grace Richards

Grace has served with the OMF (U.S.) homeside since 2015. She has a tremendous love for East Asian food, scenery, culture, and people. In her free time, you can find Grace taking walks in nature, spending time with family, and finding new hobbies to explore.