How Big is Your God?

by Crystal Paine

There have been many thoughts swirling around in my head regarding the college discussion. I appreciated many excellent points which were brought forward. I hardly feel like I need to say much more, there is one thing I want to finish this discussion with, though...

I think the bottom line is this: How big is your God?

Is He big enough that if you step out in faith and follow a path which may seem contrary to the world's way of doing things, you can trust Him to provide? My God is that big!

Is He big enough to care for you if your husband dies and you are left with 12 mouths to feed? My God is that big!

Is He big enough to take care of you so that you can live on one income? My God is that big!

My God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. If I need anything, He can supply it.

I can say all of this because I know. I have experienced it the last three years of my life. We have lived through some very lean times, but God has been so faithful. We always had plenty to eat and a roof over our heads and more than we needed. God has answered prayers in amazing ways --sometimes at the last minute. God has made the "ends meet" when the budget wouldn't work out on paper.

It is amazing for me to look back upon the last few years of my life and see how God has carried us through. Two years ago, we had no clue how we would survive law school. We only had a small amount of money in the bank, plus the money we'd saved for law school. We wanted to stay out of debt, we wanted to trust God regarding our family size and accept with joy however many children He saw fit to send us whenever He saw fit to send them, and my husband and I wanted to follow the conviction that the Lord had led us to that I should be a keeper-at-home.

I admit that the first year was very rough for me. I worried a lot. I prayed a lot. I cried a lot. Having been raised in a well-to-do family and always having more than I could possibly need or want and then learning to live on the bare neccessities and often not even knowing how we would pay for those was definitely a test of my faith. But, as I continued to cling to the promises of God in Scripture that He would provide for us and as I saw God time and time again answer our prayers, my trust in Jehovah-Jireh began to deepen.

The Lord provided jobs for me to work as a mother's helper for Christian, homeschooling families. God provided a job for Jesse and then moved him to an even better job. I got pregnant and stopped working as a mother's helper. We didn't know where the money would come from, but I began to truly depend upon the Lord to provide. I prayed that the Lord would give me creative ways to earn an income from home. I started researching and trying things. Little by little, doors began opening and money started trickling in through my efforts.

I continued learning, continued praying, and continued trying. More and more opportunities opened up and more and more money started coming in. I began to realize that you can make income from home and you don't need a college degree to do it or even experience necessarily. You just have to have the willingness to put forth the time and effort and endurance to see it through and keep plodding along through the tough times for you can't just set up a successful business overnight.

In the past year, God has blessed our business beyond my wildest imaginations to the point where it is now bringing in a nice income for us. God has allowed us to stay out of debt through law school (only one semester left!). And, He has given me more income-earning opportunities than I have time for.

In addition to our business, I also began working for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine doing some temporary work this Summer. I was just planning to work for them for a few months and that would be it. God had other plans. After taking on new responsibilities little by little, they offered me a managing position. Just a few weeks ago, they offered me the position of Marketing Manager. Jesse and I prayed and talked about this for a few days before we felt a peace about me accepting it. It has been the quite the learning experience, but I am enjoying it very much. It's wonderful to get paid to do what you love to do!

In the last few months, I have been cutting back in other areas and trying to just focus on a few income-earning things that I enjoy doing and feel I am more gifted in. There are so many possibilities that I know of now and I would rather just focus my extra time and energies on those things I truly enjoy!

I'm not saying all of this to "pop my buttons" -- I have a long way to go and a lot left to learn, believe me! I am telling you this because want to encourage you from my own experience that I know God will provide. I also know that it is entirely possible to earn a good income from home -- even part-time. And you don't have to have a college degree to do so. I'm not saying that college is always wrong or that everyone should have a home business. What I am saying is that I serve a big God. He can take care care of you whether you have a college degree or not.

We often can limit God by trying to fit our lives into a presubscribed box of what one has to do in order to succeed in life. God is bigger than any presubscribed boxes.

Crystal Paine is a 24-year-old homeschool graduate from Topeka, Kansas. She is the blessed wife of Jesse and joyful mother of Kathrynne. Visit her site, Biblical Womanhood, for books, articles, encouragement, and inspiration!

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