"Daddy," Henry's son yelled. "It's time to wake up!" He stumbled out of bed, and stared at all the crooked pictures that hung on his bedroom wall. Weepy eyed, the frail middle aged man walked over to the picture of his wife Ann, who died 3 months ago, and slowly straightens the frame. “Why do you do that daddy,” his son Jackson asked? Don’t you know that when the 8:30AM train comes by it will shake the walls and just get crooked again?” “Jackson go and get ready for school, and tell your sister to wake up and get ready as well.” “Yes Sir,” he said respectfully. Henry closes his bedroom door and walks over to the pile of clothes in the corner of his small room. He had to find the best looking uniform in the pile of dirty laundry to wear to Alex's grocery store, where he works as a cashier. Every shirt he picked up was either too wrinkled, or stained. So he just picks up what looked to be the best shirt, shakes the wrinkles out, and gets dressed, After he makes his bed, he gets on his knees and has his morning prayer time. After he was finished praying, he walked over to Ann’s picture and asks, “why did you leave me? I need you more now than ever.” He turns off the light and goes to the kitchen, walking by his daughter Jean sitting at the table working on her homework assignment. “What is that smell,” she asked? “Its me, he said, I chose to live in the room with the mold in this old shack, so that you children wouldn't have to." “Oh, sorry daddy,” she said, while giving him a hug. Henry opened the cabinet and it was bare. He opened the fridge and there was no food, and he doesn’t get paid until tomorrow. He was thankful that his children was on the free breakfast and free lunch program at school, but he wasn’t sure how he was going to feed them dinner tonight.
He waited until the children got on the school bus, and then started walking to work, 3 blocks away. The day went by fast and he realized it was just a few minutes before his lunch. He quickly wiped down his counters with cleaner, and went to rest in break room. By surprise, his manager Sam walked in, and handed him a brown paper bag that had shrimp fried rice in it. His baby blue eyes became weepy for the second time today. “Thanks Sam,” he said. After eating half, he closed the container, so he could share the rest with his children for dinner. The manager sat down next to him, and asked,"how is everything going with you, Henry?" "Everything is going okay, Sam." "Are you sure? I don’t know how to tell you this, but I have gotten several complaints on your odor today, and I was wondering if you needed some new uniforms." Henry was offended, but knew he was only speaking the truth. "What’s going on with you, Henry?" "Ever since my wife passed away 3 months ago, I had to quit my job as an electrician because the company wouldn’t pardon the time off I needed to prepare her memorial, and funeral services. After several rejections with job applications, I was forced to leave our home, and move into something I could afford, a moldy shack. I had to sign up to receive food stamps for me and my 2 children, which totals only a third of the amount it takes to feed them. I’ve served saltines more than once to my kids for dinner, I’ve had to sell all my electronics to be able to keep a roof over the heads of my children. I’ve had my car taken away by the lien holder, and I carry around a dollar in my shoe for a loaf of bread just in case we need food, and sometimes, I don’t even have that." "Henry, don’t you have any family that you can ask for assistance?" "No, sir," Henry said. "How do you expect to continue to provide for your children if you are so very poor," Sam asked? "See, that’s where you are wrong, I am not a poor man, but a trusting man." "What do you mean, Henry?" "I don’t worry about how I will eat tomorrow, because I know that God will provide for me somehow, someway." "Are you telling me that with all that you are going through, you still trust God?" "Yes, what is wrong with that, Sam?" "It just doesn’t seem right, and it doesn’t sound like things are improving for you." "Well, why do things need to improve? I wasn’t complaining, I was just answering your question. If this is God’s will, then I shall endure."
"Okay, Henry," Sam said, "but I don’t get it." Henry stood up from his chair and said, "let me ask you something before I go back to the register, Sam. I spoke of the trials I am currently enduring, but did you hear me say, we are starving, cold from the snow, or wet from the rain? Everything else is material things, and not a necessity, so I can’t blame God for not providing for me, because I have everything that is essential to live, it may not be the best, but it’s there. Do you believe in God, Sam?" "No," he said. "That’s why you don’t get it. Let me share one more thing with you. This morning, I noticed my cabinets were empty, I had no idea how I was going to provide dinner tonight for my kids, then you walked in here, and handed me our dinner." Before walking out of the door, Henry said, "God always provides for me, and He can always provide for you too!" Sam, was left in wonder, how could a man who denies God, be used to carry out God’s will, he thought? He thought about going to church Sunday, but didn’t know where to go. "Henry," he shouted. Henry stopped walking and turned around. "Can I join you for church this Sunday?" He smiled, and said, "That would be great, Sam."
The poor and the deceitful man meet together the LORD lighteneth both their eyes.
Proverbs 3:5-6
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding, In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths"
Matthew 6
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own
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