They

dare
to trust God
Chapter taken from the book

The Highly Educated the Rich

and Powerful
Whither are they bound?
By
DR JOHN SCLIM
Email Address:
drjohn.sclim@gmail.com
Website:
http://comingworldevent.weebly.com
 They dare to trust God

Those who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ do not have the privilege and joy
of experiencing the faithfulness and love of God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
They do not know what it is to be loved by Him, and to be cared by Him. For
those who know Him, they find that He never fails those who wholly trust Him,
as this chapter shows.

The widow who dares to trust God

Up on a lone hillside, and far removed from any other dwelling, there
lived … a poor lone widow, who for many a long year had learned to rest,
in every difficulty and in all her need, upon Him Who has somewhere
said, “Let thy widows trust in Me”. It was in the depth of winter when the
incident I am going to relate occurred, and the poor woman’s stock, never
very abundant, was, I suppose, reduced to its lowest by the difficulty of
finding any employment at that season of the year. Unlike the widow in
the Hebrew story, she actually found her barrel of meal fail, and when she
had finished the last handful she went to bed, possibly with hope that she
might be successful in earning a few pence on the morrow.
But when the morrow came, a terrible snowstorm swept over the land,
and the lane leading to her little cottage was almost blocked with snow. It
was quite beyond her slender powers to battle with the raging storm and
make her way to some neighbour’s house where at least she would be
made welcome to a dish of porridge. There was only One Friend to Whom
she could apply, and in Him she had the most perfect confidence.
Accordingly she filled her pan with water, and put it upon the fire, and
actually put the salt in the water. “Noo”, she said to herself, “I’ll jist gang
ben, and ask the Loord for the meal”. So she retired into her inner
chamber, and there with thanksgiving and praise she made wants known
to the Lord. She had not been on her knees when there was a loud knock
on the door. “Na an, Loord,” she said, “Thou canst no hae sent the
answer sae soon.”
But the knocking continued, and on her opening the door a buxom
farmer’s lass, who lived some distance off, flung down a sack of meal on
the floor, exclaiming, “Father sent ye that; and I think ye may be very
grateful to me for bringing it here through all this terrible storm.
Whatever possessed my father, I don’t know; but all morning he has been
dinning into me about that sack of meal, and snow or no snow, I must be
sure and fetch it up to you; but a pretty hard job getting through the
storm, I can tell you.”
So she was rattling on when a glance at the old woman fairly overawed
and silenced her. There she stood with uplifted hands and eyes
bedimmed with grateful tears, as she exclaimed, “He’s aye the same,
Jeanie! He’s aye the same! Many a lang year hae I trusted Him, and I
ne’er found Him fail; and He’s nae fail me noo. I put on the water, and I
put in the salt, and ne’er a grain o’meal had I in the house. Sae I was just
asking the Loord to send me the meal, when I heard ye knock at the door,
 and noo here comes the meal jist while I was asking for it.”

This is a true story taken from a magazine. A lot of people the world over
are worried about old age security, but not this widow. God worked and
moved the farmer to send the sack of meal to the widow, and it came at the
right time, not too early or too late. The widow knew how to trust God. She
had given God many a wonderful opportunity to show that He is the True and
Living God, and that He can be trusted unreservedly. She said, in her Scots
accent: “Many a lang (long) year hae (have) I trusted Him, and I ne’er found
Him fail; and He’s nae fail me noo.” To her, she found the Lord “Jesus Christ
the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” (Hebrews 13.8) The lass
herself was overawed, and God was glorified. The rich cannot look to God to
provide their daily bread, and so do not have the privilege of experiencing
such situations first-hand. They will never know what it is to be severely tried
in that way. Those who depend on God for their daily bread will find that God
is faithful: He never lets them down. Like the poor widow, they do not worry
at all where their next meal is going to come from. They are satisfied with
simple fare.

God knows the exact size of the feet

God does not only provide food for those who look to Him for their daily
bread, but also their temporal needs. Take the case of a missionary who went
to Africa without financial support from men. God wonderfully provided, as the
following story will tell.
On one occasion, he reached camp weary and footsore. Pulling oft his
boots, he was alarmed at their condition; they were worn through. He well
knew how serious this could prove; picking up a jigger (an insect of the
tropics) in one of his toes could completely and even permanently
incapacitate him. Very simply he put his case before the Lord. “I can't go
on tomorrow without boots. I can't buy a pair; there are no shops and we
are three months’ journey from the coast. Lord, it is Thy responsibility to
provide for Thy servants engaged in Thy business.”
Next morning before they were ready to break camp, a man appeared
 sent by the local Chief. A pair of boots dangled from his arm. “Where
did the Chief get them?” asked the missionary. “Some of our young men
were going to the coast, several months ago, and the Chief asked them
to bring some of the things which the white men wore. However, when he
put these boots on, they were too hot; he took them off, saying that he
would keep them for the first white man that came along.”
What struck the missionary so forcibly was that God had not only
planned several months ahead but that He knew the exact size of His
 servant’s feet  they were the best fitting boots he had ever worn! (From
Harvest Fields)

The above incident happened many, many years ago, but a similar
incident happened in modern times. A few years ago, a man desperately
needed a rugged pair of sports shoes (not for sports but for ‘walkabout’) to
replace his worn-out pair, but he could only afford to spend not more than
US$12 on a new pair of shoes. He brought the matter to God in prayer. Not
long after, as he was travelling in a bus, he looked out of the window and God
directed his eyes to see a huge banner advertising a big sale on shoes. He
decided to visit the sale in the evening. There were so many kinds of shoes at
the sale, but one pair caught his attention  its design and colour looked
exactly the same as his worn-out pair of shoes (he did not wear them to the
sale but had left them at home). He tried the pair of shoes. He found that it
fitted his feet comfortably, but he was not sure whether the shoe size was the
same as his old pair. It was the only pair left, and the price  US$12. He
bought the shoes and went home. He checked the size number of his worn-
out pair, and found that it was smaller than the new pair he bought. He
remembered that when he first wore the old pair, his heels got blistered on
the walk. The new pair caused no blisters and fitted his feet perfectly. God
even knew the exact size of his feet!

How is it you don’t know how to trust God?

At a conference, one of the preachers said that so many of God’s people “do
not know how to trust God.” Yes, they trust Him, but they do not know how to
trust Him. They do not allow God to work and prove to them that He never
fails those who trust Him wholeheartedly and unreservedly.
There is one very important principle to note if one in need is to know how
to trust Him. The person does not tell anyone about his needs nor does he
look to anyone to supply his needs. He looks to God only. He knows that God
knows his needs. For example, if God has called him to serve Him full-time
(there must be clear evidences to show that he has been prepared by God to
serve Him), He will be with him, and provide his daily bread. The full-time
worker of God does not look to men, or the church, or organisations to provide
him a salary or monetary gifts. He does not appeal for funds, nor write letters
giving hints that he needs money. He does not take advantage of the
hospitality of God’s people either. He looks to God only. Although his faith in
God may be severely tried, he is amply rewarded when he has the joy of
seeing how God works in an amazing way to supply his needs. God is glorified
thus.
A specialist in Allergy had to attend the International Congress on
Allergology and Clinical Immunology in Sydney, Australia in October 2000. It
was the year Australia hosted the 2000 Olympic Games. He was warned
beforehand by an Australian living in Sydney that he would not be able to find
accommodation as all hotel rooms would have been taken up by those
attending the Olympic Games. The specialist also found out that the Sydney
2000 Paralympic Games would be held at same time as the Convention. He
was not deterred nor worried about finding accommodation. He brought the
matter to God, and told Him to help him get a room in an inexpensive hotel
that would be within walking distance of the Sydney Convention and
Exhibition Centre. Less than a month before the Congress, he wrote to three
hotels in Sydney to find out whether they had a single room available for him
for one week. People usually make hotel reservations months ahead, but he
made his quite late. Could he get accommodation in one of the hotels near
the Convention Centre? A few days before he was due to depart for Sydney,
he received a reply from two hotels: they were not able to help him. Still he
did not worry. His eyes were on God. There was one hotel left that had not
replied yet. On the day he was leaving for Sydney, he suddenly received a fax
from this hotel offering him a room. He arrived in Sydney and headed for the
hotel. He found that the hotel was about ten minutes’ walk from the
Convention Centre. And the accommodation cost  AUD300, for seven nights!
Incredible, isn’t it? God had come in to help him. The person who had warned
him about difficulty getting accommodation told him that he needed to know
how to trust God.
 God works behind the scenes
Someone once said: “God's ways are behind the scenes, but He moves all the
scenes which He is behind.” It is true to this day, whether people believe it or
not. An example of this is related in a symposium programme. Some details of
the account are left out or modified.
A Consultant in Allergy decided to organise a symposium for doctors in
his country to help them know more about allergy, which is a serious
health issue, not only in his country, but also in other parts of the world.
He invited two Allergy specialists from Australia to speak at the
symposium, and they accepted the invitation
After finding out that so many doctors were interested in attending the
symposium, the organiser had to get financial support from drug
companies to hold the event. In January 2000, he attended a Congress on
Allergy and Immunology held in a neighbouring country. At one of the
Congress lunch symposiums, he met a general practitioner (he sat beside
him at the table) who told him that, after he had heard from the
Consultant in Allergy of his intention of holding the symposium he had
planned for his country, he too was interested to organise the same
symposium for the doctors in his country. The two specialists would
speak not only in the organiser’s country, but also in the GP’s country.
The GP would see to the airfare for the two speakers. He would approach
the drug companies in his country for sponsorship of the speakers. With
the airfare taken care of by the GP, the organiser, that is, the Consultant
in Allergy, would be able to, financially speaking, host the symposium in
his country.
After the Congress was over, the GP wrote to the organiser to say that
he would be approaching two drug companies in his country to ask them
to sponsor the speakers. He also asked the organiser to approach the
drug companies in his own country for sponsorship.
One night, on 15 June 2000, as the organiser was reading the Book of
Proverbs in the Bible, a thought suddenly struck his mind  what would
happen if the GP could not find sponsors for the speakers? He felt rather
apprehensive and thought that he might have to cancel the event.
Suddenly his eyes fell on a verse in the Book of Proverbs that he had not
read yet. The verse says: “That thy trust may be in the Lord, I have made
known to thee this day, even to thee.” (Proverbs 22.19) He was led to see
this verse, which tells him to trust God. Not long after that the bombshell
came, but he had already been prepared for it. The GP got someone to
write to him, on 22 June 2000, to tell him that he could not get the drug
companies to sponsor the symposium in his country. “I therefore think
that we shall not be able to host this symposium this time around.” As for
the organiser, he had to go ahead and host it in his country.
The symposium was to be held on Saturday, 5 August 2000 at a hotel.
Support from drug companies began to come in with one well-known
international drug company making the biggest contribution. When July
came, the speakers had not yet booked their air tickets. One of the
speakers wrote to the organiser on 19 July 2000 and mentioned two
options: “1. Further drug company support [he and the other speaker
 would contact a few companies in their country], and 2. Failing that, I can
continue with the work for my talk and have M____ [the other speaker]
give it as a joint effort.” How could the Symposium be held without him?
He must come and speak at the Symposium. The speaker mentioned two
options, but the organiser had a third option, that is, prayer. The
companies sent in their payments, and he sent a bank draft for AUD2,398
to the speaker on 21 July for the purchase of two air tickets for himself
and the other speaker. After sending the bank draft to him, he received
news that another drug company would be participating in the
Symposium. However, he was still short of funds. Then, on 30 July, the
speaker who received the money to buy the air tickets faxed a letter to
tell the organiser that the travel consultant for the other speaker had
“managed to purchase fares for total of $1,600”. It was really surprising
news.
There were enough funds now  enough to even give the two speakers
each an honorarium!

God was honoured. Someone said that it was a testimony (for God).
Another said it was a miracle. The doctors came to know how God intervened
to see that there were sufficient funds to hold the event. God told the
organiser, through the Bible, to trust Him, and he was glad that he did.

Is it true that God helps those who help themselves?

God cares for every department of a believer’s life if only he wholeheartedly
yields to Him. The believer should not hold back anything from God. Let Him
work so that He alone would be glorified. There is a common belief that “God
helps those who help themselves.” That is a fallacy. God will only help those
who do not and cannot help themselves; otherwise God will not get all the
credit or glory for helping them. For example, if you are poor, you don’t let
people know how poor you are. You don’t want to draw their sympathy. You
don’t tell them that your husband is not earning enough, that you have so
many mouths to feed, and that you have to pay your children’s school fees,
etc. If you tell them all these, it may make people feel bad if they don’t help
you. They may help you out of sympathy, but that does not give glory to God.
But you may say you have to help yourself first by letting people know about
your financial problems so that God may move these people to help you. That
is not His way. (See how God helped the poor widow?) Again, if someone
should ask you whether you have any needs; you should not even tell him.
You only make your needs known to God, and you will see how God works, in
His wonderful way, to supply your needs. God will move someone who does
not know of your needs at all, to help you. People will be astounded. Then all
those people who don’t believe in God or His existence may know that God is
real, and that “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble”
(Psalm 46.1), and that the “great God and Saviour Jesus Christ” lives today! If
they are still sceptical in the face of so many evidences of His wonder-working
power, they have themselves to blame when they come before Him for
judgment.

God helps those who do not help themselves

Here is another true story of a poor man who had no money to pay rent and
risked eviction.
In a village near Warsaw many years ago there lived a Christian
peasant named Dobry. His wife had been sick, and so through no fault of
his he had gotten behind with his rent.
His landlord was a very hard-hearted man, and although it was winter,
he threatened to turn Dobry out of his house unless the rent was paid.
Dobry went to see him three times to say how ill his wife had been, that
this had prevented him from paying his rent, and that he would be sure
to pay if he would allow him a little more time. But the landlord would not
listen. He said he was coming next morning to turn Dobry out.
That evening Dobry went home feeling very sad, and gathered his
family around him for prayer. He told God all about their trouble and
asked Him to please send them help in some way. After prayer they sang
a hymn, beginning with the words:
“Commit thou all thy griefs
And ways into His hands.”
The closing lines of the last verse were these:
“When Thou wouldst all our need supply,
Who, who shall stay Thy hand?”
While they were singing the last verse a gentle tapping was heard at the
window. An old friend was there. It was a raven that Dobry's grandfather
had taken out of a nest while young. He had tamed it and set it at liberty.
He often came to the cottage, and if he found the door shut, he would
light on the windowsill and tap the windowpane until they let him in.
Dobry rose and opened the window as usual. In hopped the raven, but
what should he be holding in his bill but a gold ring set with diamonds
and precious stones. The raven laid the ring down before their wondering
eyes. Here was God's wonderful answer to their prayer, an answer that
filled the hearts of all the family with joy and thanksgiving.
At first Dobry thought he would sell the ring and pay his rent with the
price of it. But afterwards he thought it would be better to take it to the
minister and ask his advice. He did so, and as soon as the minister had
seen the ring he knew that it belonged to the royal family of Poland. He
took the ring to the King and told him the story of the poor peasant,
Dobry.
The king was so pleased that he sent for Dobry and gave him a
handsome reward. Now Dobry had plenty to pay his rent with, and
enough to buy food for his family all through the long winter. When
 Spring came the king had a new house built for Dobry, and gave him
some cattle from his own stalls. Over the door of the new house there
was a cast-iron tablet on which was the figure of a raven with a ring in his
beak. Underneath was a verse from the hymn they were singing when
the raven came as God's messenger to bring them relief.
We may be sure that whenever Dobry read the words of the text:
“Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in My Name, He will give it to you,”
John 16.23, he would surely feel that it was a wonderful promise for a
time of trouble.
This happened many years ago, yet the Lord abides the same today
wherever there is faith to trust Him. “Jesus Christ the same yesterday,
and today, and for ever,” Hebrews 13.8.

Here we do not see the man going round to ask his friends or relatives for
help. He went to God only, and God did help him in a very wonderful way.
Those people dared to trust God. They had learnt how to trust Him.