Fishes and Loaves

So we had our first yard sale fundraiser this weekend. WOW!  That was alot of work!  Our good friends from church had donated a ton of stuff that they had left from their yard sale back in April, and we also had a lot of other friends bring stuff for us to sell.  Our barn was loaded.  We sorted through as much as we could, and decided not to price anything, but to take donations.  We decided to trust the Lord with our yard sale.  He would take care of us.  I began to pray early in the week for a specific amount for us to sell, $2000.  I prayed most of all, though, for the Lord to give us lots of opportunities to glorify Him and tell people what He had done for us.  Going into this week we were praying also for the issue to be resolved with the little boy's file that we want to adopt.  The agency in China that handles it was closed all week to update their databases, so we knew we wouldnt find out anything.  But the enemy used it all week to bring doubt into my mind and to try to make me lose my focus.  I just kept praying for God to work and for His will to be done.  We worked all day Thursday sorting and setting up tables, making and putting up signs.  Friday morning I was up before the sun praying and getting ready.  At 7:04am our first customers came.  We had a steady flow of customers the whole day and I was the main one taking money.  It seemed to me that it was busy, but it didnt seem  like people were really donating alot.  We had a few 10's and 20's, but it was mostly 1's and 5's.  In my mind I was trying to keep up with what I thought the total might be for the day.  We worked until around 4, then we covered everything up and went in to get ready for our outing that night: dancing at our friends house!  As we were packing up I was thinking to myself that most of the large items had sold, and it would sure be good if we had some more furniture or something big to gain attention.  No sooner had I thought that but a friend from our old church called and asked if we needed a couch!  YES!!!  They brought it, and another friend brought a few items as well.  I looked around the house and noticed some items we had forgotten and just like that, we were able to refresh the merchandise for the next day.  As we began to count the money Greg asked me how much I thought we made.  In my mind I was thinking $600 at the most, but I said i didnt want to guess because I knew God was bigger than whatever I thought we had done.  Lo and behold, we had sold almost $1000 that day!  We were flabbergasted.  We went and enjoyed BBQ and dancing with our friends and came home fairly early to get ready for Saturday's sale.  I was up again, not quite before the sun that day, but ready to work.  The customers began coming early again, but they all seemed to be window shopping.  No one really was buying much.  We were all pretty tired, and honestly ready to call it a day.  Around lunch time it was so slow we began talking about what time we would pack up.  A stray shower came and we had to run cover up some items.  As soon as it stopped, we uncovered them, only to have to cover them again in a few minutes when a pretty good downpour came.  By now it was 12:45 and it looked like we might be done for the day.  Disappointed and tired, we began to pack up as it continued to rain.   A few stragglers came, but mostly people were done and didnt want to shop in the rain.  We were packed up and in the house and ready to relax by 2pm.  We honestly didnt expect as much as Friday money wise, due to the lookers and the rain.  BUT THE LORD showed out!  We made another $912!  It seemed impossible.  I took the money most of the day, how could that be?  We had to shut down by 1pm, how could that be?  It was almost like the fish and loaves, like The Lord had multiplied what we had taken in and made it more.  Our two day total was almost exactly $2000, just what I had prayed for.  We stand amazed at our Lord and how He is teaching us and providing for this adoption.  He is strengthening our faith and stretching it all at the same time.  Now we continue to wait, as we still have had no word on our little boy.  We are trusting the Lord, and so thankful for His goodness.

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
    they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon

  planted in the house of the Lord,
    they will flourish in the courts of our God. 

 They will still bear fruit in old age,
    they will stay fresh and green, 

 proclaiming, “The Lord is upright;
    he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.”

Psalm 92:12-15