I knew at a pretty young age what I wanted to do when I grew up. I looked at a few colleges to explore my options, but knew beauty school is where I was destined to be. I learned how to braid when I was in middle school by watching a friend and that sparked my interest in playing with hair. Fast forward twenty-some years and I still feel so fortunate that I get to play with people's hair and make a living doing it!
When you think of God as your provider what comes to mind? Most likely money is at the top of that list. Maybe you were thinking of food or shelter or clothing, but what does it take to obtain those...money. My second question would be "what does it take to make money?" We need some sort of talent or ability to earn a living.
God provided me the talent and ability to see colors and angles in a unique way. Maybe angles aren't what you think of when picking out your next haircut, but they are actually the foundation of every single haircut. Who knew I would need that geometry lesson after all! All of these little pieces of knowledge and talent I was given before I even had a name were pieces God provided to me so I could use them to provide for more than just myself.
Most of us are familiar with what is often referred to as the Lord's prayer. Jesus provided us with this prayer as a model to know how to pray. Notice before Jesus even gets to the prayer part He says, "for your Father knows what you need before you ask him." The Lord knows what we need, but often times we get our needs mixed up with the things we want.
So what would you consider your needs to be? I am sure that answer changes with the seasons of life. I think it also changes as we grow in relationship with Christ. The things we once yearned for no longer seem to have any importance. In fact, the closer we grow to Jesus the farther away we drift from worldly wants. All these things seem to be a burden that only weigh us down.
Jesus said,"give us today our daily bread." Although this seems like such a simple request, asking for what we need only for today takes discipline. We acknowledge our trust in God as our provider when we say "hey God, just give me what I need for today." When we know He will provide what we need for today, we can trust He will do it all over again tomorrow.
Even when we trust God to provide for the things we do need, we are certainly not immune to wanting things that we don't. We are human after all. Not to mention we live in a culture that tells us the bigger the house, the better the car, the happier we will be. Maybe that is why He leaves us with "and lead us not into temptation, and deliver us from the evil one." He knows we will struggle. He knows the flashy things of life will catch our eye and distract our hearts. We are going to give in and live beyond our needs. Enjoying the comforts of life are not a bad thing unless we allow those "things" to take up greater space in our hearts than God Himself.
So just a little reminder next time you make your favorite meal and you seared your steak to perfection and the steaming twice baked potato is seasoned just right and melts in your mouth with all its buttery goodness, remember the One who provided the food to prepare and the talent to make it. Or maybe your crafting hobby of making cards and signs has taken off and you are actually making something off of what you are just doing for fun. Before you pat yourself on the back for the hard work put in, maybe give a little thank you to the Creator for creating this ability in you.
We can be thankful to have such a loving God that not only provides the physical things we need everyday, the talents and abilities to help us provide those, and even a little extra just for fun.
