He Giveth and Giveth and Giveth Again

Note by Belinda:


My friend Magda shared a story in response to my post of a few days ago:Point Taken. She agreed that I could post it here! When God gives, he gives so lavishly. And the song that Magda mentioned is a hymn that I love.

Oh Belinda - how amazing to read how God giveth and giveth to you. Do you know the hymn He Giveth More Grace? You can find it on u tube.I first heard it in the Salvation Army at a time when I really needed to hear this confirmation. The last line of the chorus is:
He giveth and giveth and giveth again.
Your story reminds me of the North American Christian social workers' conference we hosted in Toronto in 1998 when we prayed for a conference that would make our peers feel special. 


Registration fees for the annual conference are kept low to reflect the reality that social workers generally do not have the money to pay for a luxurious event. The week of the conference the loonie dropped to its lowest and since the Americans paid the registration in American dollars we reaped the benefit of the big difference in the currency.


On the first day the hotel put out the muffins we ordered for the 10:30 coffee break with the 8 a.m.coffee by mistake, and we got a second batch of free muffins for the mid morning break. 


We also received a gift from God in the form of a wedding feast for opening evening President's Reception when a wedding was cancelled. 


Another gift was nearly two hours additional hours without charge on a  Dbus tour to Niagara Falls because the driver and tour guide claimed the extra time was such a great blessing to them. Sometimes when God wants to make a point He giveth and giveth and giveth again.

Comments

Dave Hingsburger said…
Isn't there a worry that a coincidence can be 'given' to God. A wedding was cancelled - the back story here is tragedy. Weddings are cancelled, typically, because of illness, death or betrayal ... is the suggestion that God wanted to give a meal to a Christian group so he brought calamity to a hapless couple so he could get their food? I imagine that the bride or groom might find this interpretation really, really, difficult to understand. I understand and agree that God gives gifts, that there is bounty in faith, but I wouldn't want to know a God that would hurt someone to bless me - I just wouldn't. I've tried to read this in differing ways to get that idea out of my head but I couldn't. I know that you, Belinda, are open to this kind of discussion, I'd like to hear more about how you see this ...
7:27 PM
Dave Hingsburger said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
7:27 PM
Belinda said…
You know, Dave, I wrestled with this before posting. I think now that adding a note about that at the beginning might have been wise because the same thought occurred to me.

This is what I thought but didn't say and probably should have:
The fact that a wedding was canceled was tragic.
But out of a bad thing like a canceled wedding, a bunch of poor social workers were blessed. If the wedding had to be canceled, that they were the recipients was God's bounty. I don't think God orchestrated a wedding into failute in order to do that. He is able to provide in any way he wishes.

I also struggled in the same vein with my story of blessing at the conference. I only know what happened and that everyone there was amazed. There were much more deserving people there and I don't know why I was the object of such blessing but I was.

Rabbi Kushner talks about this in one of his books. He said that he doesn't even like to thank God for saving him from natural disasters when they happen, because someone else wasn't saved and that makes God into a whimsical God. It gets complicated!

I thank God for his mercies and blessings knowing that "he works all things together for good." even in bad circumstances.

I hope my thoughts make sense. Bottom line, I can still totally see your point.
10:51 PM
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