A Picture of Impact
Goosebumps. The moment you know you’ve stumbled upon something holy and are witnessing God at work. We’ve had these moments before and yet are always surprised when we see them again. Have you experienced something like this lately?
The text message came in to us late on a Friday morning. It was Ashley, one of our single mamas, desperate, asking for help. Her rent was coming due in six days and a source of income she planned on that weekend had fallen through, making her rent money way short. She asked us what ministries, churches or resources we knew of that could help. Concerned, we gave her a few suggestions; but an hour of phone calls later, she had only been told she did not qualify for their help. As is our norm, we told her we would pray; and pray, we did. Fervently, pleadingly, in intercession for our friend, asking God to provide rent money for her.
Not only does Ashley work a full-time job, she is also a gifted photographer on evenings and weekends. She had planned, saved where she could, and would be able to pay the rent with that weekend’s wedding shoot. But, lo and behold - the groom tested positive for COVID-19 and the entire event was postponed.
Can you imagine the gut-punch this was to Ashley? She called her landlord first to ask after her options, who threatened late fees and legal action if she missed the deadline. Desperation set in, and Ashley immediately tried booking more photo shoots. We continued praying alongside her.
The SAME day, as I was looking through the mail, there was a different type of envelop. As only God can orchestrate, it contained a check with the intention it would be used to help a single mama in great need. We knew right away this was God’s answer to Ashley’s need!
As if that weren’t incredible enough, the rest of the story gets better. What we didn’t know at the time, and only found out later, was that Ashley had gathered all her photography equipment to sell, feeling she had no other option to earn money for rent. These precious assets she owned enabled her to provide and would take away her ability to do photo shoots, but what other choice did she have?
But God intervened. He used the generosity of a donor, not only to help this mama pay rent, but to keep her camera and equipment. And, as only God can orchestrate, she began receiving more photo shoot bookings than before!
What joy it is to watch God at work! He stirred the heart of fellow believers to provide for an incredibly hard-working mama in exactly the way she needed in that moment.
Philippians 4:19 “And my God will meet all your needs, according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
