God WILL provide

"If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? So do not worry and say, 'What are we to eat?' or 'What are we to drink?' or 'What are we to wear?' All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself" -Matthew 6:30-34

One of my dear brothers has inspired me to dive into the Gospels, reminding me that God speaks gently and softly, often in passages we've read a thousand times.

I've been using the phrase "God will provide" quite frequently the past few weeks. It's something I believe with all my heart, along with the fact that everything happens for a reason. Would you like to hear my most recent story of how God's been providing for me?

Christ the King is going on a foreign mission trip to Kingston, Jamaica this May. Since last summer, my heart has been burning to love and serve; that's it. That's all I want to do. So naturally, when I heard about the mission trip, I wanted desperately to go. After talking it over with my parents, they said that as long as I could pay for it, I could go. The only problem is that my bank account looks like this:

I know, sad story.

So I began my fervent job hunt (which I am currently still on). I have filled out countless applications- I'm past the point of being picky about not wanting to do certain things. At this point, I really just need the money! Anyways, I decided to go home a couple weeks ago to spend time with my wonderful parents (hi, mom!) and to get some things done. While I was there, I got a check from my grandmother. She had gotten me a very nice watch for Christmas that didn't work correctly, so I returned the watch and she just sent me the money to buy one I would like. When I learned how much a passport was going to cost me, I weighed the options and decided that a passport would be more worthwhile to me than an expensive new watch (not to mention that I still wear my watch from camp last summer, paintwar stains and all). Without that check, I would've already been in the whole before I even started paying for the trip. So needless to say, I got the passport. Step one: complete.

Now, there are a limited number of spots for this trip, as set by our priest and Missionaries of the Poor. That number is 25. As the spots were filling up, I was being notified so that I could make a decision about going on the trip before one was made for me. Since I got my passport the first weekend of February, I have still been looking for a job (Craigslist has almost as many visits as facebook...), and have still been unsuccessful as of yet. There was a meeting last night for all those wanting to go on the trip, and I couldn't attend because I had a night class (and test). When I came to Christ the King today, I was informed that there were only 6 spots left. As I was talking to Father Paul, 2 girls came in and turned in deposits; 4 spots. A few minutes later, another girl came in; 3. Then a male friend of mine came in and turned in his forms; 2 spots left. I had a decision to make.

I was nervous about the very real possibility of not being able to get a job to pay for the rest of the trip (an additional $250 after the $200 deposit). But I was confident that I had the money in my account to make the down payment. Why was I so confident? Because just this past weekend, God provided for me yet again. Friday night I celebrated Valentine's Day (for the first time!) at Texas de Brazil with my sweet boyfriend:

It was super awesome! And, if that weren't enough, we got to go to Arkansas that same night! LSU student government sponsors a bus trip to many of our away sporting events, and this year's men's basketball bus trip was to Fayetteville, Arkansas. Now normally I wouldn't have even bothered, as our team isn't doing so hot this year, buuuuut I have a wonderful sister who happens to be a Razorback!



It was SUCH a blessing to get to see Anne, even for a short while. The snow, Chick-fil-A, and sister time were much needed. I could've done without the 18+ hour round trip bus ride, but hey, it was bonding time for Todd and I, right...?..



Anyways, back to the point. When I got home Sunday night, I had lots of mail waiting for me. I opened up the first letter, and it was from "cousin Lavina" (in Grandma's handwriting). When I talked to my mom, she informed me that she was some distant relative of mine who used to send all her college nieces/nephews $100 for Valentine's Day. Apparently my great grandmother decided to continue this tradition, and I'm now reaping the benefits. But it gets better. I opened 3 more cards and accumulated fifty more dollars. What did that mean? I had 3/4 of my deposit for Jamaica, without even getting a job. Thank you, Jesus.



I understand that I still need to be employed somewhere so that I can 1. pay for the rest of the trip and 2. have money for next semester, but this is one of those things where you just have to say "clearly, for whatever reason, God wants me on this trip." I feel extremely blessed for this to be working out in my favor. My prayer now is that I will come across the right job, and soon, so that I can fulfill whatever this mission is that I'm being called to in Jamaica. Prayers from anyone/everyone else would be much appreciated!





Ok, I feel like this is just sliiiiightly longer than in probably needed to be, but that's okay. I'm currently sitting in Christ the King's office working for my lovely old roommate Elizabeth, and I have nothing better to do than pour out what's been occupying my mind- the wonder of God! Well, I probably could've been studying for my finance test on Tuesday, but honestly, do you really think I'll study for that before Monday night? How well do you know me....





Peace & Prayers,

Nemo