On Friday afternoon my friend called. She was at a thrift store and spotted the exact table that I had mentioned to her months ago that I wanted (needed?) for my kitchen. After work, I stopped by the thrift store and the table was still there so I paid for it, crammed it into the trunk of my Prius (it JUST fit!) and brought it home! It makes me smile every time I remember the way God provided it for me. If I had not mentioned to my friend that I wanted/needed the table, she wouldn’t have known to call me and tell me it was there.
This thrift store find reminded me of a hard part of Scripture. Should we share our needs with others or only with God?
Years ago I read the book God’s Smuggler by Brother Andrew. The missionary author shares the miraculous ways God kept him safe and provided for him and his fellow missionaries as he smuggled Bibles behind the Iron Curtain.
God Provides Cake
One story in his book puzzles me. God provides cake for tea time. The team of young missionaries was expecting a large group for tea time. They had everything they needed except cake. Here’s the excerpt from the book describing what they did with their need:
God’s Smuggler by Brother Andrew
“So that night in our evening prayer time, we put the matter before the Lord. ‘Lord, we’ve got ourselves into a spot. From somewhere we’ve got to get a cake. Will You help us?
That night as we rolled up in our blankets on the floor of the hall, we played guessing games: How was God going to give us that cake? Among the five of us, we guessed everything imaginable- or so we thought.
Morning arrived. We half expected a heavenly messenger to come to our door bearing a cake. But no one came. The morning mail arrived. We ripped open two letters, hoping for money. There was none. A woman from a nearby church came by to see if she could help. ‘Cake,’ was on the tip of all of our tongues, but we swallowed the word and shook our heads.
‘Everything,’ we assured her, ‘is in God’s hands.’
The tea had been announced for four o’clock in the afternoon. At three the tables were set, but still we had no cake. Three-thirty came. We put on water to boil. Three-forty-five.
And then the doorbell rang.
All of us ran together to the big front entrance, and there was the postman. In his hands was a large box.
‘Hello, lads,’ said the postman. ‘Got something for you that feels like a food package.’ He handed the box to one of the boys. ‘The delivery day is over, actually,’ he said, ‘but I hate to leave a perishable package overnight.’
We thanked him profusely, and the minute he closed the door the boy solemnly handed me the box. ‘It’s for you, Andrew. From Mrs. William Hopkins in London.’
I took the package and carefully unwrapped it. Off came the twine. Off came the brown outside paper. Inside, there was no note- only a large white box. Deep in my soul I knew that I could afford the drama of lifting the lid slowly. As I did, there, in perfect condition, to be admired by five sets of wondering eyes, was an enormous, glistening, moist, chocolate cake.”
Telling Others Your Needs
Wow! God provided the cake in an amazing way! Praise the Lord! But why didn’t they just tell the lady who asked that they needed cake?
What does the Bible say about verbalizing your needs to others?
James 5:14 says, “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.” In this Bible verse, church members are instructed to tell their elders of their need for healing when they are sick.
The Church is the body of Christ. Each member has his own function and is designed to work together. Can we work together as the body without verbalizing to each other what we need? In 2 Corinthians 9, Paul writes that he had been openly talking about how the Corinthians would be giving a generous gift and he was sending a group of believers to iron out the details of the gift in advance before he came to visit.
Paul didn’t wait in silence for God to drop the gift out of the sky. He conversed about a plan for the gift. Paul goes on to say that this gift is not given reluctantly or compulsively, but the Corinthians were cheerfully giving the gift and it would result in glory to God–even though it was freely discussed.
Reserving Our Requests for Prayer
On the other hand, the Bible tells us we should bring our needs to God in prayer. For example, Philippians 4:6 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
If we only tell God about our needs, we will recognize that He is the Provider when the needs are met. We recognize the miracle of God’s provision, that He is intimately acquainted with what we need. I am in still in awe of God and how He provided $15 for me. He was the only one who knew my need even though He used someone else to gift it to me.
Telling Others or Praying Only?
This is a practical issue that impacts our daily life. My husband and I are hearts-on-our-sleeve people when it comes to telling others what we need although we do pray to the Lord, too. Are we doing the right thing? When I was researching for this blog post, I came across this blogger who feels guilty about sharing her needs with others after reading Brother Andrew’s testimony of God providing the cake for tea time. Are we supposed to feel guilty if we tell others our needs?
What do you think? Should we only share our needs through prayer to God? Or should we share our needs with others as well? What Bible verses or stories can you think of on this issue? Please comment below!
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There are a couple of different situations:
1. I need a new table for my kitchen, will you buy it for me? spoken to a friend or acquaintance
2. I am looking for a new table for my kitchen, let me know if you see one? spoken to a friend
3. God, I am only telling you this, I need a new table for my kitchen.
The 1st illustration is just coming right out and asking the person to buy the table for you. Personally, I don’t see that is trusting God to provide but asking someone else that you think can afford it.
#2 is letting the need be know to an individual and trusting God to provide.
Personally, I know between 2 & 3 depending on the item and how I feel God is leading me to trust him. I just asked local friends for extra apples they might have, lots of people have an apple tree or two in the back garden. I guess I could have just told God and waited.
I think there are some danger is #1 – guilting individuals into giving and limiting what they might give (would you give $50 a month to the ministry when they were thinking of giving $75 but will give what you ask).
Another thing to consider in the illustration is the context. The situation was in Scotland where even today individuals do not tell their financial needs, that is very offensive to people and churches there.
George Muller and Hudson Taylor were two individuals who felt strongly that they were to tell only God about their needs. Again, consider the context. Both of these individuals were living in Victorian England where many did not have much money. So in part, I think they might not have wanted to guilt people into giving or be seen as taking money from those who had so little. A Hudson Taylor quote that sums this up is, “God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply.”
My understanding of 2 Corinthians 9 is that the Corinthian church had committed to giving the gift (9:5) but were slow in getting around to fulfilling what they said they would do. Paul is rebuking them to follow through on what they have said.
We need to live a life by faith and trust that God will meet our needs. No matter how you express your needs to others we need to be trusting God. Each individually should be searching their heart to see if they are trusting God or depending on man.
Sorry this got a bit long. I agree with what you are saying. I view what you did as trusting God and letting a friend know.
Thank you so much, Beth, for weighing in on the conversation. I appreciate you bringing in the cultural elements here of what is acceptable in Victorian times as compared to in America now. I hadn’t thought about that.
Raising support as a missionary this is a difficult dilemma. People who want to give can’t if they don’t know. I’ve thought it’s more about how you ask rather than whether you ask. Asking is okay. Pushy, manipulative, constant, emotional language isn’t okay.
That’s a good point. I think about this a lot in my “day job” at our denomination’s church planting department. Part of my job is to write emails, prayer letters, and information for giving campaigns so I am constantly thinking about where is the dividing line between letting people know about a need and what is manipulative language. I’ve decided so far to pray while I write and pray when I hit send on an email or prayer letter so that I am recognizing that God is the provider. But you are absolutely right that people can’t give if they don’t know how. That is definitely a priority in my job is clearly communicating where to go or how to send a gift.
I think it’s important to share our needs with others. It doesn’t have to be done so in a way that comes across as complaining, or even worse (as was said above), manipulative.
In my own life, I’ve found that God usually answers my prayers through other people. I think that’s true for most people. There’s no miracle overnight change in the situation. Someone has to come along and help at some point. Putting your need out there connects you with people who can help. There’s nothing wrong with that.
Letting people know your needs also lets them pray for you, even if they can’t physically help. If I know other people are supporting me through prayer, it helps me feel more at peace with the situation. They can also check in with me and comfort me if I’m anxious, or remind me to trust God when I’m frustrated.
Lastly, letting people know about your needs allows you to be a witness for God. As those who know about your needs see them fulfilled, they will get to share your joy and share the benefits of seeing their own faith strengthened. Or if you’re still waiting or you get an answer you don’t like, it can say even more to those around you. If you’re dealing with a tough situation in faith and prayer, you can be a powerful testimony to believers and unbelievers alike.
Wow, Sarah. You made several good points! I like how you said that other people can pray for us even if they aren’t the one who ultimately God uses to provide our need. And that is a good testimony, too, to encourage others to pray for their needs as well when they see how God provides for you.
I think there’s a simple solution here.
We pray first, and as part of our prayer, we ask God to show us who we should tell about the need. Maybe there’s someone who’s just waiting to hear or maybe He leads us to tell no one. Then we can be sure He is getting the glory as He takes care of us. What do you think?
That’s a good idea! A both/and solution where at every turn we acknowledge that God is in control and that he is the provider. I like it.
This book reminds me of George Muller which I just read last year. I would say it’s okay to ask. I think at every turn we acknowledge God as provider. Everything about God is relational, so I believe that community and how we love others is important to Him. If we don’t share with others in our lives, they won’t know how to pray for us.
That’s a good point. God has designed us to be relational.
I think there is a time for everything (Ecclesiastes anyone?) My husband’s favorite parable is the one about the guy who heard there was a flood coming and prayed that God would save him. The people came by to evacuate them; he stayed because God was going to save him. Then there was a boat, but he refused a ride because God was going to save him, and so on. Long story short, he drowned. When he got to heaven, he asked God why He didn’t save him, and God said he sent the army, a boat, a life raft, and a helicopter; what more did he want? The tea cake would have been just as big of a blessing if the neighbor lady would have baked it for them. But maybe God whispered to their spirit that another one was already on the way. I’m not judging. I just know God uses us in each other’s lives.
One of my friends says when you refuse help, you are stealing someone else’s blessing, because it is better to give than to receive. We have to let others give. It’s part of being in God’s family. We shouldn’t always whine and complain, but we can most certainly pray together. Matthew 18:19-20 says if two or more of us agree about anything and ask for it in Jesus’ name, I will do it for us. And Galatians 6:2 tells us to bear one another’s burdens. We can’t do that if we keep them to ourselves.
Great post, Rachel. And wonderful discussion!
Thanks, Heather for those thoughts! I like your husband’s favorite parable:)
It’s a good reminder that we need to let others give because it is a blessing to give. That thought spurs me on to know that it’s okay to ask others to help and say yes when they offer it.