All the small things....

I began recording my surprises on Tuesday.  It has already been quite the couple of days and very exciting.

 
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19


 
Tuesday morning I woke up with $2.38 in my account.  I was stressed and tired of someone not providing for their children.  I was not sure how I was going to make it through the next few days.  Two of the kids had EOGs starting the next day and I knew I needed to get some things at the store so that they could have a healthy breakfast.


 
Tuesday morning, I woke up craving a CFA chicken biscuit. It was driving me crazy and I was frustrated because I was hungry and couldn't think of anything else.  I was waiting for a friend to drop off her daughter for the day. When she arrived, she had a CFA bag in her had with two chocolate milks.  She had brought breakfast for our two little girls.  Then she looked at me and said there was a biscuit in the bag for me.  I had to laugh.  How did she know?  She even ordered it the way I liked it.  I shook my head and thanked her and God.


 
After taking the kids to school, I came home and spent some time writing and doing my quiet time.  Once I was finished, I decided to check my account just to see if there happened to be a miraculous deposit that might have occurred during the night.  I typed in my password, chuckling at myself. Oh, the lengths I will go thinking miracles will occur if I just pray.  As my account popped up, there was $13.38 in my account.  My draw dropped.  I signed out of my account and then signed back in because I knew it had to be an error.  My account popped up again.  Lo and behold, there was $13.38 in my account.


 
Why do I doubt.  Drives me crazy.  I smiled.  It would be plenty of money for orange juice, bread and microwave bacon with some left over.  (I already had eggs in the fridge) I said a prayer of thanks and scolded myself for doubting.


 
Later in the day, I was fixing dinner for the kids when there was a knock at the door.  I opened it to find my girlfriend at the door.  She handed me money and thanked me for keeping her daughter.  I was frustrated at first because friends don't take money from friends for watching each other's kids.  However, something in me stirred and recognized it as God providing.  Tears filled my eyes.  The money would more than take care of groceries for the rest of the week.


 
My day on Tuesday ended just as well as it began.  My baby cat had run away.  This has been happening a lot lately with both cats due to the current state of the garage door.  They are able to escape.  Anyway, I was upset because she was gone and I was not hopeful that she would return.  Before bed that night, sure enough, she showed up at the front door.


 
Tuesday was full of surprises and full of God's provision and faithfulness.


 
Wednesday was not quite as dramatic because my main needs had been taken care of on Tuesday.  Because of Tuesday, Wednesday brought rest, writing and reading, which that in and of itself was a blessing and surprise.  A day spent at home doing nothing does not happen very often and so I relished the hours of quiet and relaxation. That afternoon I received an email from someone that they had found my high school diploma along with a few of my other personal belongings that they wanted to return to me.  I was shocked.  Mainly because this person had taken the time to find me.


 
As the afternoon progressed, it was time to take the kiddos to the pool for a while.  As we were heading out the door, my phone went off.  I had an email.  A new follower on Twitter.  Typically I don't get excited over a new follower but this particular one was rather exciting, for me.  He happens to be a writer that I admire, a speaker and evangelist and a little famous.  For whatever reason, he chose to follow me and it made me smile, in a big way.  After that, several more followers were added and my Twitter following increased.  It kind of made my day.


 
Now God's surprises are not always butterflies and roses.  Before bed last night, I worked on a budget.  During that time, God convicted me and showed me ways in which I needed to save money and spend more wisely.  He made me aware of the fact that I need to be giving more back to Him and less toward the junk of the world.  It led me to evaluate my priorities like where my money was going. After some time in prayer, my head hit the pillow and I felt more at peace than I had in while in regards to money.


 
I believe this experiment is going to be beneficial. Sometimes we miss the small things that God does in our lives and even toss them up to luck or coincidence when it is not.  God cares about even our smallest of needs and provides even the smallest of things.  It is definitely helpful to keep track of what God is doing in your life.  It allows you to see His hand working.