Philippians 4:19 “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
My daughter, Charis, was not even two years old. One morning, I asked her what she would like for breakfast.
“Cho-co-wat!” she responded, eying the leftover brownies.
“Sweetheart, we don’t eat chocolate for breakfast. How about some cereal?” I asked her.
“Cho-co-wat!” she insisted. This was unlike her. She was usually so agreeable.
“No, Sweetie. How about some eggs? Or a banana?” I encouraged her.
She put her little hands on her hips, and said with great passion, “I need cho-co-wat!”
I’ve had those days. I gave her the chocolate.
Unfortunately, we humans sometimes get our wants and our needs confused, don’t we? God, who loves us beyond measure, often gives us the things we want. But those things are granted as extra special blessings. We have no guarantees that He will give them, and we have no right to demand them.
He does guarantee, however, that He will meet our needs. If we are hungry, He will either send us food, or He will give us the strength to endure without food. If we are cold, He will send us a coat, or change the weather, or give us the fortitude to grit our teeth and be cold. If we are sick, He will heal us, or He will help us to face our sickness with grace and dignity. He will meet all of our needs.
Funny, when we really evaluate our genuine needs, we realize how generous our God truly is! I have felt hungry, but I’ve never starved. I’ve been cold, but I’ve always had a coat, along with central heat in my home. I’ve faced sickness and heartache and rejection and all sorts of difficult things. But none of those things has destroyed me. And even if they one day take my life, I will just move from this life to the next, where those things will never touch me again.
In addition to meeting my needs, God has generously supplied above and beyond my needs. Why, if I were to list my blessings here, we would run out of internet space! God is indeed abundantly wealthy, and He is abundantly generous. He loves us. He gives us what we need to survive, to endure, to make it through this journey called life. And on top of that, He even gives us chocolate!
Dear Father, Thank you for meeting my needs. Thank you for giving me excessively more than I need. Please help me to remember the difference.
Amen
i can just hear this conversation between you and charis! thanks for sharing about God’s provision–He is so good!